A BICESTER preschool that was previously criticised by inspectors has made a big improvement.

Courtyard Preschool in Launton Road was been ranked as ‘requires improvement’ but has now moved up to ‘good’ following an inspection last month.

The 30-pupil school was said to carefully track the learning of youngsters and to develop good partnerships with parents.

The management team was praised for its hard work to improve the quality of the provision.

Children were found to form warm relationships with staff.

In her report inspector Penny Fisher said: “Staff speak clearly and kindly, helping children to build their confidence and their communication and language skills. “Staff understand the importance of teaching the basics well in order to help children to be ready for school.

“ Older children are also becoming aware of the structure of stories, such as Goldilocks.

“Younger children focus intently and develop good control as they, for example, scoop and pour lentils into different size containers.”

Ms Fisher said the school could improve further if the monitoring of teaching quality was ‘sharpened’ in order to make sure it is consistently of a very high standard.

She also recommended a review of strategies for promoting children’s mathematical development to ensure that all children make good progress in that area.

The school was inspected on January 31, following an earlier inspection in February 2016.