Houghton Regis nursery given deadline to improve by Ofsted - but has made some progress since 'inadequate' rating

A Houghton Regis nursery has been set a deadline for more improvements by Ofsted

Cleverkidz, on Tithe Farm Road, was found to still require improvement at its latest inspection, which followed on from an ‘inadequate’ inspection in February this year.

Ofsted Inspector Ann Austen found youngsters were not being provided with a curriculum which challenged them and the quality of teaching skills was variable.

She said: “Staff caring for the youngest children are not always effectively deployed to support their developmental needs when they are cared for alongside older children. Opportunities for the children to develop their own play and ideas are also restricted.”

But on a positive note she added: “Nevertheless, children demonstrate that they are settled and happy spending time participating in the activities provided. Children wash toy vehicles in water and use paint and lollipop sticks to make marks on paper. Older children use paint to create their footprints on large pieces of paper and are able to count their steps.”

She noted the provider and manager are continuing to receive ongoing support and advice from the local authority and demonstrate a willingness to make further improvements to enhance the quality of care and education provided for the children. This includes the planned recruitment of further qualified staff, the refurbishment of some areas of the nursery, and the purchasing of additional resources to support the children's learning and development.

She said: “The provider and manager have taken appropriate steps to meet the majority of the actions raised at the last inspection.”

Setting out a deadline for further improvements, the inspector said there needed to be an improvement in the teaching of the curriculum, a check that staff are deployed effectively to support the developmental needs of all children, especially the learning opportunities provided for babies when they are cared for alongside older children.

A spokesman for Cleverkidz said: “Since the previous inspection we have worked hard to strengthen the weaker areas of the Cleverkidz provision by making a number of staff changes through targeted recruitment to augment our team with experienced and qualified nursery educators. We appreciate the inspector recognised our willingness to make further improvements to enhance the quality of care and education provided for the children by acknowledging our current staff continue to develop their teaching skills to support them to stimulate children's curiosity and involvement in the play, to build on what the children here already know and can do. In doing so, the inspector observed children demonstrating that they were settled and happy spending time participating in the activities provided here at Cleverkidz.

“We continue to work closely with the local authority to further improve our curriculum and educational activities to ensure we consistently provide our children and parents with better outcomes. We were reassured on the day of the inspection staff to child ratios were appropriately maintained, the hours of children's attendance were accurately recorded, and the children were supervised while eating. Additionally, changes have been made to the curriculum, including the training of staff to enhance their teaching skills. Safeguarding arrangements are also effective.

“Cleverkidz are looking forward to the next inspection and are hopeful the improvements currently being implemented will ensure a better inspection result next time.”