A PADGATE nursery has been told by Ofsted it requires improvements following its first inspection.

Education watchdogs visited Ashbourne Day Nursery, in Padgate, on June 14, but reported a number of issues that needed addressing by the setting.

The Hilden Road nursery was rated ‘requires improvement’ on all four areas of the inspection.

The report began positively by stating that ‘leaders have an accurate view of the strengths and next steps for the setting’ and that they are committed to raising the quality of education for each child that attends.

“A programme of professional development has been put into place to support staff in their roles,” an inspector said. “However, these plans are in their infancy, and there are inconsistencies in staff practice and the implementation of the curriculum.”

While the leaders have created a ‘well-sequenced’ curriculum, inspectors explained that they have not ‘communicated to staff what they intend for children to learn during their time at the nursery’.

The official report continued: “Staff know each child well and children benefit from experiences that reflect their interests across all areas of learning.

“However, when planning activities, staff do not consider children's current development in order to build on this effectively.

“Children prefer to spend their time engaged in free play and they quickly lose focus in planned activities. The progress that all children make is variable.”

But despite these issues, the inspectors noted that staff are welcoming and provide ‘encouragement’ and ‘enthusiasm’ to each child upon their arrival to the setting.

“They support children to feel safe and secure. Children eagerly go with staff to have their nappy changed and enjoy singing together,” the inspector said.

“Children have formed good relationships with staff and each other. Babies giggle as staff tickle their faces with feathers. They roll balls to each other and clap with excitement.”

It was also said on a positive note that staff support children’s communication and literacy skills.

They model new words and ask children to repeat these words. However, it was noted that staff ‘do not accurately pronounce the sounds that letters represent when modelling this to children’.

Staff are said to support the children in their growing independence by encouraging them to access their own drinking water, clean their noses and serve themselves meals with assistance.

And parents of the children who attend the setting are ‘positive about the care that their children receive at the setting’.

An inspector added: “They have seen progress in their children's development since they started to attend.

“Parents value the communication they receive about their children's care needs. However, staff do not always provide parents with information about their children's development. “Furthermore, they do not discuss with parents how they are using additional funding to support children's learning. This limits continuity between setting and home.”

Improvements highlighted to meet the requirements of Ofsted included ‘ensuring that staff's professional development precisely targets inconsistencies in practice to help raise the quality to a consistently good level’.

As well as to ‘implement a curriculum that is ambitious, well sequenced and has a clear intent for what children will learn’.

To read the full inspection report visit reports.ofsted.gov.uk/