Would Ewe believe what we have been doing?

Following the launch of the Shaun in the City trail on 6th July 2015, the children have had a fab-ewe-lous time visiting Cribbs Causeway, the Downs and Whiteladies Road in search of the model sheep. The children have been very excited to put on their jackets and take the bus - they even had time to take a selfie!

 On Tuesday 21st July, all of the children attending the morning session took the bus to see the sheep called Bumble on the Downs. Whilst there they had a picnic lunch and took part in a Stretch and Grow session with our regular visitor Linda. The children went baa-rmy and had lots of fun!

Ofsted - We're all Good!

On Thursday 2nd July we had a routine Ofsted inspection at our Downs Cote Drive nursery. We are proud and absolutely delighted to announce that we received a ‘Good’ rating which was backed up by a hugely positive report that can be read here. As with our nursery at Passage Road a lot has changed in the last year or so and to have an official tell us that she is astounded at the speed of the changes and the positive impacts that have resulted, and that at the current rate of change we should aim to be rated as Outstanding soon is a massive boost for the team who have been working so hard. We are already acting upon the inspector’s recommendations that were around further embedding the changes that we have introduced and looking to take that next step towards becoming an Outstanding nursery.

We now have both nurseries with a Good rating which is testament to the team and the efforts they have all put in. We love to hear your feedback on any aspect of our nurseries so please let us know any comments you may have. Our interaction with parents and the closeness with which we all communicate and work together was something that inspectors at both nurseries praised and it is these relationships that help make Once Upon a Time what it is.

Our thanks go out to the parents who have supported us through the changes (and those who were questioned by the inspector on the doorstep!). We are all so proud of our nursery and we are excited to share it with the children as we move into the future.

Best regards,

Rob, Lorraine and the team

Gorilla Gardening

On Tuesday 14th July our nurseries went quiet as children from both Westbury and Brentry made a trip to the Downs to watch a special performance of Gorilla Gardening! The show had recently completed a hugely successful run at the Tobacco Factory and we were lucky enough to be invited to a one off al fresco performance specially for benefactors and other key people who helped make the show happen. The nurseries’ co founder Trish has a wonderful garden at her house next to the Downs and she is also the proud owner of one of the original gorilla statues that were displayed around Bristol back in 2011 so she was the perfect host!

On a day that thankfully stayed dry the children were treated to a performance of the show and a workshop all about planting seeds before having afternoon tea in the garden! There was a huge garden, an amazing wendyhouse and not to mention Doris the Gorilla! We had so many parent helpers that we would like to say thank you to all of them – The children (and us grown ups!) had a wonderful time and it wouldn’t have been possible without you!