Ofsted rates Lambeth nursery 'Inadequate' in all areas

A South London nursery has been blasted by an inspector after staff failed to change their gloves between nappy changes. Beechwood School Nursery in Streatham was rated inadequate in all areas following a visit by education watchdog Ofsted on January 4. 

The inspector said staff put kids at risk of "cross-infection" by not changing aprons and gloves between nappy changes and failing to clean tables properly before mealtimes.

A report published on February 21 reads: "Staff are not sufficiently knowledgeable about the nursery's health and safety policies and procedures. For example, staff do not change their aprons and gloves between nappy changes and do not clean tables effectively before children's mealtimes. This puts children at risk of cross-infection. 

"Staff do not carry out risk assessments fully, which means that the environment is not always safe."

The inspector said the manager of the nursery on Leigham Court Road was "ambitious in her plans for the curriculum," but said she had failed to consider "how to support staff to implement the curriculum to meet the needs of all children." 

The report criticised how staff dealt with kids' behaviour, saying children often became "restless" and "distracted," with long waiting times between changing activities. 

"This causes accidents and makes it difficult for children to settle down for their lunch and sleep times. Staff do not use effective strategies to manage children's behaviour at times. For example, they physically guide children rather than explaining what they want them to do," the report added.

The inspector also criticised staff for failing to give children whose first language wasn't English the chance to hear and learn their mother tongue while at the nursery. 

Staff were praised for offering kids healthy snacks and a bottle of water, but the inspector criticised the nursery for failing to offer water with meals. "[This] means that some children do not get enough water during the day," the report added. 

In a statement sent to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Beechwood School Nursery said it was recently under new management and felt the Ofsted inspector had reached a verdict about the nursery based on a previous complaint.  

The nursery accepted a member of staff had broken health and safety rules while changing a nappy and described the breach as "not pardonable." But it said the worker "felt under pressure… uncomfortable and intimated with the inspector in the toilet" while she was changing the child. 

The nursery added: "Apart from this incident, no accident nor major safeguarding or health and safety issue occurred during the inspection. […] The families have been extremely happy with our setting and have asked for a letter, a petition, to be written to make Ofsted change the rating as they disagree with [the] findings."

"Overall despite what Ofsted has rated us, we as [a] community are excited [for] the transformation of this new school."