The Learning Tree Nursery & Kids Club

The Learning Tree Nursery & Kids Club
Unique reference number (URN): 400124
Address: Behind Carlton Miniott Community School, Carlton Miniott, Thirsk, North Yorkshire, YO7 4NJ
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 15/03/1994
Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR
Registered person: Carlton Miniott Pre-School and Nursery Committee
Inspection report: 6 March 2026
Exceptional
Strong standard
Expected standard
Needs attention
Urgent improvement
Safeguarding standards met
The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for
governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open
culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively
identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.
How we evaluate safeguarding
When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:
Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding.
Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all
legal requirements are met.

Strong standard
Achievement Strong standard
Children flourish and make excellent progress from their starting points in development.
Those with disadvantage or special educational needs and/or disabilities make admirable
advancement in their communication and language skills. For instance, some children arrive
at the nursery with little to no language skills. These children receive highly impactful
support and learn how to hold conversations and retell stories. Consequently, this supports
these children to benefit from and make progress in other areas of the curriculum.
All children are very well prepared for the next stage in their education. They show great
levels of confidence and are self-assured in their own abilities. Children have highly positive
attitudes to their learning. They show that they enjoy all aspects of their time in the nursery.
Even the youngest children who attend learn how to concentrate and listen for long periods.
Children repeatedly show that they remember previously learned knowledge and
consistently build on their prior learning.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard
Leaders and staff have embedded highly effective daily routines. For instance, children learn
how to be patient as they wait for their food at snack time. Staff are considerate of children's
ages and stages of development while maintaining high expectations for all. They know the
children in their care very well and make an effort to spend time with their key children. This
promotes secure and nurturing relationships between children and staff.
Children repeatedly show that they understand the rules for their behaviour. They
consistently listen well and follow instructions from staff. Staff swiftly and sensitively manage
any minor and rare behaviour incidences. Children learn how to show kindness to others.
They help to resolve conflicts and support their friends. Staff play games with children to
help them to learn important skills, such as waiting for a turn or that they might not win every
time. As a result, children play extremely well with each other. They show their
independence in setting up their own games, taking turns and sharing.
Parents and carers value the rich opportunities for children's learning provided by the
nursery. This, in turn, promotes children's ongoing attendance. Leaders are thorough in
following up on any absences and liaise with the local authority funding team when
necessary. Leaders continue to emphasise and promote the importance of regular
attendance with parents.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard
Leaders constantly review and enhance the provision. This ensures that care practices and
children's experiences are of a high standard. Staff adapt routines to ensure that all children
can be included. Leaders have enhanced the snack-time routine especially well to ensure
that children get the most out of this daily routine. Children learn how to handle real China
cups and plates with extra care during snack time. They learn that not doing so might cause

these delicate items to break. Staff choose a different child each day to be the snack-time
helper. They help to set the table and prepare and serve snacks to their friends. This fosters
children's sense of responsibility and kindness, which in turn promotes positive self-esteem.
Children hear consistent messages from staff about how to stay healthy. They know that
washing their hands prevents germs and that germs can cause them to be ill. Staff teach
children yoga and set up games to encourage children to be physically active. This
promotes children's enjoyment of exercise. Staff use story- and circle-time activities to
support children to be able to identify and express different emotions. Leaders work with
parents and carers to provide flexible settling-in arrangements that are tailored to meet
children's individual needs. As a result, children feel happy and emotionally secure when
they begin to attend the nursery.
Curriculum and teaching Strong standard
Staff monitor children's progress and plan their next steps in learning using child
development guidance. They precisely adapt activities and their teaching. This supports
children to consistently work towards their next steps in development. Staff cleverly support
children to build on and make links to their prior learning. Their interactions with children are
of a consistently high quality. For instance, they frequently introduce children to new and
challenging vocabulary and concepts. Staff expertly use story-time sessions as an
opportunity for conversation and to support children's wider learning.
Leaders identified that staff would benefit from further support in their approach to teaching
mathematics. Staff are now highly skilled at ensuring that children learn about mathematical
concepts as they play throughout the day. They support children to be exceedingly
independent in carrying out tasks. For example, children use the water dispenser to pour
their own drinks. They learn how to use a safety knife to chop fruit at snack time. Leaders
and staff place a high priority on outdoor learning. Children receive varied opportunities to
support their large-muscle skills, coordination and balance. Staff use strategies such as
Makaton sign language to support children with special educational needs and/or
disabilities. They embed this into children's daily routines to support their understanding and
communication. This approach helps to promote ongoing inclusion and access to the
curriculum for all children.
Inclusion Strong standard
Leaders and staff work in partnership with parents, carers and other external professionals.
For instance, they meet with health visitors before new children attend. This supports
leaders and staff to quickly identify any concerns about children's development and put in
place strategies or adaptations. Leaders continually review and adapt the learning
environment to meet the changing needs of the children. When appropriate, staff use refined
assessment tools to monitor the progress of children with special educational needs and/or
disabilities (SEND).
Staff receive targeted training on topics such as autism or communication and language.
This ensures that staff have the skills and knowledge to provide consistently high-quality
support for children with SEND. Staff put in place and review individualised learning plans

for children with SEND. Consequently, children with SEND continue to thrive and achieve
well. This is particularly evident for their speech and language development.
Leaders target the use of additional funding to provide children with more one-to-one time
with staff. They use it to purchase specific resources to support children's learning. Leaders
work with parents to ensure that funding for disadvantaged children provides the most
benefit. For example, leaders understand the value of providing hot meals for children with
disadvantage. This meets children's needs and supports them to make the most of the
learning opportunities available to them.
Leadership and governance Strong standard
Leaders and committee members work in close partnership. They show high levels of
dedication to their roles. The committee members hold frequent supervision sessions with
leaders. They speak regularly with staff to ensure that their wellbeing is supported and
nurtured. Leaders work alongside staff to observe and monitor their practice. These
approaches help to ensure a thorough oversight of the nursery and support leaders to
continue to identify areas for development.
Since the previous inspection, leaders have vastly extended the opportunities for
professional development. They ensure that training for staff is specifically targeted to meet
the individual needs of the children who attend. This includes those with special educational
needs and/or disabilities. Staff carry out training on children's patterns of behaviour in
response to observations that they have made on children. This helps staff to further
understand and support children's repeated behaviours. Staff speak enthusiastically about
the positive impact that their training is having on their practice. They are eager to continue
to strengthen their practice to support the ongoing development of the nursery.
Leaders seek the views of parents and carers and act on their feedback. This supports the
ongoing evaluation and enhancement of the nursery. Staff update the parents'
communication board with information about what children are learning in the nursery. This
supports parents to further build on children's progress at home.
Compulsory Childcare Register requirements
This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register.
How we check if a provider meets the requirements of the Compulsory Childcare
Register
When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can
have the following outcomes:
Met
Not met

Voluntary Childcare Register requirements
This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register.
How we check if a provider meets the requirements of the Voluntary Childcare
Register
When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can
have the following outcomes:
Met
Not met
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children thoroughly enjoy learning and making friends at this stimulating and caring nursery.
They giggle with glee as they chase bubbles outside or make mixtures in the mud kitchen.
Children huddle together in an outdoor playhouse to listen to stories with staff. Staff
introduce children to ambitious knowledge and vocabulary. Children know the features of a
book, such as the 'blurb', spine, author and illustrator. Staff use thought-provoking words
such as 'microscopic' during conversations with children. This extends children's knowledge
of new concepts and supports their ongoing curiosity about the world.
Staff hold meetings with teachers from local schools. This supports them in finding out about
the skills and knowledge that children need to be successful in their transition to primary
school. Leaders and staff use this information to support them in planning for and
sequencing children's learning. They adapt the curriculum to also meet the needs of
younger children. For example, staff focus on supporting children to use large tools, such as
paint rollers or chunky chalks. This promotes the strength in their hands and arms in
readiness, for example, to hold a pencil and make marks. Older children are keen to learn
how to write their name. Staff support them to learn how to form the letters correctly. Staff
use well-thought-out strategies and small-group interventions to support children with
special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This supports children with SEND to
continue to make superb progress from their starting points in development.
Staff support children to find out more about their friends' cultures and backgrounds. They
celebrate children's uniqueness and differences. This promotes children's understanding of
diversity in a meaningful way. Leaders and staff invite parents and carers into the nursery for

Inspector:
Samantha Lambert
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 400124
Address:
Behind Carlton Miniott Community School
Carlton Miniott
Thirsk
North Yorkshire
YO7 4NJ
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 15/03/1994
special events and open mornings. This helps to support parents to build relationships with
staff. Leaders engage with parents who may not be using their children's full entitlement to
early education. They understand the importance of promoting punctuality and regular
attendance.
Next steps
Leaders and those responsible for governance should sustain their work to ensure
continued improvement and high standards. They should focus on creating a
transformational impact on the outcomes and experiences of disadvantaged children,
those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those who may face other
barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing.
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with leaders, committee members, staff, parents and children during
the inspection.
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 or
children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage.

Registered person: Carlton Miniott Pre-School and Nursery Committee
Register(s): EYR, CCR, VCR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00
Local authority: North Yorkshire
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 6 March 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
2 to 11
Total number of places
30
Our grades explained
Exceptional
Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.
Strong standard
The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of
them.
Expected standard
The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are
following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional
standards expected of them.
Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary
improvements.
Urgent improvement
The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of
education and/or care.
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspects
services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects
and regulates services that care for children and young people.
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