The owner of a nursery provider which shut down while they were being investigated by Ofsted over safeguarding concerns has spoken for the first time since the closure. Last month, BristolLive reported that the Leaping Lambs nurseries in Keynsham and the Willsbridge area of South Gloucestershire both had their registrations suspended by Ofsted.
Ofsted confirmed last week that Leaping Lambs Nursery Ltd - which is responsible for five nurseries according to the education watchdog - had resigned its registration with Ofsted. Owner Michael Lewis has now said it does not plan to open any new nurseries as it had become financially unviable.
Mr Lewis - who said he was not allowed to discuss the Ofsted investigation - said that they are in the process of liquidating the company. The nursery owner said they will not be reopening under a different name and that Caterpillars Nursery and Pre School, which was incorporated into Companies House earlier this month, will be dissolved.
Read more: Leaping Lambs shuts five nurseries in the Bristol area amid Ofsted investigation
According to Companies House, both companies are still showing as active. "I would like to say thank you to all the parents who have supported us over the past 13 years," he said. "We understand the inconvenience the closures will cause to parents and we hope they are able to find new places for their children soon."
Mr Lewis said that, before the closure, they were operating four nurseries in the area and had a fifth one, Broadland Bears, due to open in Keynsham. According to the Ofsted website, these are the five nurseries the provider was responsible for: Caterpillars Day Nursery in Bath, Broadland Bears and Leaping Lambs in Keynsham, Leaping Lambs Forest School in Willsbridge and Leaping Lambs nursery on Bath Road, Swineford.
In a statement, Ofsted said: "We aren’t able to discuss individual registration applications. The provider resigned their registration so our investigations have concluded. Anyone who applies to be registered on the Early Years Register must meet the statutory safeguarding and welfare, and learning and development requirements for the early years foundation stage.
"Part of the assessment of suitability takes into account the applicant’s previous childcare experience, and this is considered as part of the overall decision, which may result in a new application being refused. We also check if someone is disqualified under the Childcare Act. Section 76(2) of the act provides that a person who is disqualified may not provide relevant childcare provision, or be directly concerned in the management of such provision."
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