Calderdale nursery's fury at 'Inadequate' Ofsted rating over Tesco delivery, brambles and missing Mr Potato Head pieces

Hipperholme and Lightcliffe Day Nursery, on Bradford Road, was branded ‘Inadequate’ by the education and early years watchdog in a report published last week (September 27).

While the inspector who visited the nursery in May listed a catalogue of points which the team do well, she said safeguarding arrangements were not effective, stating: “The provider has failed to ensure the nursery is secure to prevent people entering unchallenged.

"Children are not always suitably supervised to prevent accidents. As a result, children are not safe.”

But Charlotte Roebuck, Managing Director at the nursery – which was judged the highest rating of ‘Outstanding’ at its last inspection - says the judgement is disproportionate and the team are working with a barrister to challenge Ofsted’s rating.

In a letter to parents, she explained the kitchen door was open when the inspector arrived because there was about to be a Tesco delivery.

The only accident mentioned in the report involved a child swinging through the door of a clip-together wendy house, which was dealt with quickly.

And the inspector raised concern about bramble branches across a path. Ms Roebuck said, while there was a bramble poking through the fence, this was cut this back while the inspector was on site and before any children were in that area.

"At no point had any child been out to play in an outdoor area before this was risk assessed and removed,” she said.

"I did explain to the inspector that outside our polytunnel we do have brambles, and that the children enjoy picking blackberries and are well-educated in assessing risk in avoiding the prickles.”

The report also claimed staff “do not consistently create learning opportunities that capture and sustain older children's interests”, saying missing Mr Potato Head pieces meant children had “very limited resources to create a character”.

Ms Roebuck said: “This perhaps illustrates clearly why we think the report is unfair. You will know if you have one at home how easy it is for bits of Mr Potato Head to go missing. Bizarrely, this has become a feature of the report.

"We have over 40 sets of potato heads in the setting and I do not feel this issue is of significance and certainly have never seen such a bizarre reference in an inspection report.”

Before the nursery’s next inspection, it has been told it must “ensure the premises are secure to prevent any unauthorised access, ensure staff provide stimulating and challenging activities that are age-appropriate and build on what children already know and can do, and ensure children are suitably supervised to prevent them taking inappropriate risks in their play”.

Ms Roebuck said she has been inundated with support from parents since the judgement.

“My staff team and I are looking forward to our reinspection before the end of November so that we can demonstrate to the new inspector the excellent care and teaching and learning that we provide,” she added.