Families and nursery staff in Rishton are celebrating after Copperhouse Children’s Centre was awarded an outstanding rating by inspectors.

Ofsted gave a glowing report to the Station Road centre for its wide range of activities, bringing the community together and helping raise awareness of abusive relationship and domestic violence.

It is the first time the centre has been inspected since being opened in 2008 and manager Julie Appleby said it was a 'fantastic result'.

She said: “We are thrilled as you can imagine and we got outstanding in all 20 judgement categories which is brilliant.

“It’s really nice that they see us as being at the heart of the community and here for the families and children of Rishton.

“I really want to thank all our staff and parents for their support, hard work and effort to make this possible.”

The two-day inspection was carried out in March by inspector Susan Walsh.

In her report she said: “This is an outstanding children’s centre. Registration rates are extremely high and its excellent services are exceptionally well used by local families.

“A typical comment from a parent was that the staff, ‘have been a blessing’. The centre works remarkably well to raise awareness of abusive relationships and domestic violence and its impact on children’s well-being. It helps families to tackle urgent issues.”

The inspector praised the centre for having a ‘very significant impact’ on developing the personal, social and emotional skills of the children and reducing inequalities in the neighbourhood. She added: “The centre provides outstanding support for families with disabled children and those with special educational needs.

“The centre’s outstanding capacity for further development and improvement is illustrated by the way that staff never rest on their laurels.”