A NURSERY full of young Tiggers, Piglets and Pooh Bears is celebrating an "outstanding" Ofsted report.

Springfield Lodge Day Nursery in Powder Mill Lane, Dartford, was awarded the top rating in all four categories following its latest inspection.

The 150-strong nursery has eight different rooms for children aged from three months up to five-years-old - three of which are named after AA Milne’s classic characters.

Sue Ayriss is the manager of the Honey Pots room for toddlers and has worked at Springfield Lodge for seven-and-a-half years.

She said: "We teach the children independence so by the time they get to school they are confident.

"We get to know them and what stage they are at and how we can move them on to the next stage.

"The rooms are nicely decorated and all the children’s art work goes up on the walls which is nice and colourful and makes the rooms interesting."

The quality and standards of early years provision and its contribution to the well-being of children were both rated "outstanding" in the nursery’s second straight top-graded report, published in December.

With a range of outdoor play areas boasting soft safety surfaces and natural tree barking, the purpose-built pre-school also has a grass playing field for sports days.

Inspectors Lara Hickson and Rebecca Hurst wrote: "An extensive range of interesting, stimulating activities are available.

"The free flow access between the indoor and outdoor environments enables children to choose where they wish to play and encourages their decision-making skills.

"Children are making excellent progress from their initial starting points as a result of the extensive opportunities available to them and the valuable support from staff."

Mrs Ayriss added: "All the staff work really hard and are happy here.

"We all enjoy the job."