A Nottinghamshire nursery which was previously rated as 'outstanding' has fallen to inadequate after a recent Ofsted inspection. Little Millers Day Nursery and Out of School Club is located on the site of King's Mill Hospital on Mansfield Road in Sutton-in-Ashfield and was visited by inspectors in March this year.
Having previously been rated as outstanding at its last inspection back in 2015, it was deemed to be inadequate with safeguarding concerns raised by Ofsted. The nursery, which is run by the Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and is not outsourced to an external provider, provides care for up to 96 children, including some with special educational needs or disabilities.
The nursery employs 22 members of staff and looks after children aged from six weeks to eight years old. The report, which was published by Ofsted earlier this month, states: "The provider is not meeting safeguarding and welfare requirements.
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"Children's safety is not assured because staff do not have secure knowledge and understanding of the 'Prevent' duty. This means that staff may not identify when children or their families are at risk of being drawn into extreme and radicalised behaviour."
The government states the objectives of the Prevent scheme are to respond to the ideological challenge of terrorism and the threat from those who promote it, to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism. There is specific guidance for education and childcare settings.
Inspectors did, however, find that children developed trusting relationships with staff who take the time to understand their care needs, also providing them with opportunities to develop their social skills. Children are also described as "confident learners" who love reading books and feel valued at the nursery. The children there feel "emotionally secure" and have developed good relationships with staff members.
The report found that systems were not put in place to ensure effective safeguarding and, though staff have completed some relevant training, the manager had not checked that staff understand this training. It also indicated that staff "do not know the signs to look out for which would suggest that a child is being exposed to extremist views".
The report continues: "Children's safety and welfare are compromised because staff lack knowledge and understanding around some safeguarding topics. Staff know the signs to look out for which indicate a child is at risk of abuse, but not if they are being exposed to radicalised behaviours."
Ofsted has rated the facility at least 'good' since it opened in 2000 and rated the facility 'outstanding' in all areas following its previous inspection in 2015. It is due to be reinspected within six months of the most recent inspection.
Rob Simcox, Director of People for Sherwood Forest Hospitals which runs the nursery, said: “Little Millers Day Nursery has a long and proud history of providing ‘good’ and ‘outstanding’ quality day care to children, thanks to the commitment, skills and experience of the Little Millers team who are devastated by the outcome of this inspection.
“The whole of our hard-working Little Millers team shares Ofsted’s ambition to ensure that families can access the best possible day care. Our dedicated team is committed to addressing the points raised by inspectors and are already working to get our rating back to a level our Little Millers families deserve.”
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