Parents have been left heartbroken and distressed after a nursery in Bristol received a damning Ofsted report. The Honeytree Day Nursery & Pre-school on Filton Road behind Monk's Park was given an 'inadequate' rating after an inspection on May 16.
The nursery - which has 139 children from infancy up to four years old - has fallen from an overall effectiveness rating of ‘good’ since its last full inspection in February 2019. Storal Learning, the group that runs Honeytree, has since confirmed that two senior members of management employed at the time of the inspection no longer work for the nursery.
Concerns were first raised in March 2021 after an allegation about staff interactions with children regarding its safeguarding procedure. Ofsted’s latest report published on June 24 stated that arrangements for safeguarding had not been effective.
Read more: New Covid strain dominant in Bristol region as cases rise
The report states that managers have developed staff's knowledge and understanding of safeguarding. However, it goes on to say employees do not record concerns in sufficient detail to help them to identify when to take further action and do not share enough information with other agencies.
Storal Learning said it has launched an 'intensive development plan' to ensure a swift and robust set of improvements. It added Ofsted has since visited the nursery “and is satisfied with the actions Honeytree Bristol have taken so far”.
A parent who wishes to remain anonymous told Bristol Live how the nursery relies heavily on agency staff who "don’t know the children and don’t bond with them". They also said accused the nursery of a lack of stimulation and behaviour management.
In response to the staffing challenges, Charlotte Roberts, regional director of Storal Learning, said: “Honeytree Bristol, like many other nurseries across the country, is experiencing the negative impact of an extremely challenging recruitment climate. There is a shortage of qualified early years educators across the sector, and, within Bristol especially, the demand for childcare spaces is high, particularly following recent closures of other nurseries within the local area.
Sign up to the Bristol Parents Club newsletter here for family-related news around the city
“Our priority is the need to support, train and coach the team whilst making necessary improvements to the nursery. We are keeping parents informed and will continue to keep all families up to date with developments.”
The report goes says children are not sufficiently challenged and do not make good progress in their learning. “Without support from staff to engage in activities and participate in discussions, children sometimes lose focus and their behaviour deteriorates,” it read.
It also found that provision at Honeytree Nursery was inadequate. It said that “new and unsettled children are not supported consistently to build secure emotional bonds with their key persons”.
Another concerned parent whose child had a place at this nursery has said that the manager has been dismissed and the area manager resigned. A spokesperson for Storal confirmed the pair - who were in post at the time of the inspection - are no longer employed by them.
Storal added that there has been a change in management at the nursery who are “committed to ensuring the quality of care and education is consistently at a level that the nursery can be proud of”.
Several parents have spoken to Bristol Live accusing the nursery of cutting places for children with a day’s notice, leaving many parents “in utter panic” without daycare for their children.
The report tasked the team of 21 staff to improve its conditions including improving training to raise the quality and consistency of education and to provide support and coaching for managers to help them fulfil their roles and responsibilities. The nursery must also ensure managers, including the designated safeguarding leads, have sufficient knowledge and understanding of safeguarding.
Staff must also improve the support for children who need additional support, including those with SEND, to ensure they receive the help they need to make good progress in their learning and development. Storal Learning has since said Ofsted conducted a follow-up visit on Friday, June 17 and “were satisfied with the actions taken so far and were able to see first hand the progress that is being made”.
The nursery group added that Honeytree Nursery has always prioritised the wellbeing and education of the children in their care and their partnerships with parents. It operates under a mission of ensuring its children “feel safe, loved and inspired to learn”.
Read next:
