Peterborough pre-school has registration reinstated after Ofsted inspection

Ofsted suspended a Peterborough pre-school’s registration for 10 days as they believed children might have been ‘at risk from harm.’

Inspectors visited Paston and Gunthorpe Pre-School in November for the latest inspection – and after highlighting a number of concerns, suspended the registration at the site from November 15 until November 25, when inspectors said the pre school had taken ‘appropriate action.’

Ofsted said that during the suspension period the pre-school was not allowed to provide any child care for which registration was required.

The pre-school was given a rating of ‘inadequate’ following the inspection, which was carried out after Ofsted ‘received concerns about the provider’ on November 9.

The inspection was carried out on November 14, with another visit made by Ofsted on November 23.

The pre-school had been rated as ‘good’ in the last inspection, carried out in 2017.The Peterborough Telegraph has contacted the pre-school for comment.

‘We are satisfied that the identified risk of harm to children has been removed’

In a document titled ‘Complaint: actions taken’ published after their visit to the pre-school,’, inspectors said: “We suspended the provider's registration on 15 November 2022 because we believe children may be at risk of harm. Suspension allows time for the provider to take steps to reduce or eliminate the risk of harm to children."

In the same document, they added: “On 25 November 2022, we lifted the suspension because the provider took appropriate action to deal with the matter that led to the suspension and that they had taken sufficient action to meet the welfare requirements notice. We are satisfied that the identified risk of harm to children has been removed.”

‘Leaders and managers fail to follow effective procedures’

The report said: “Weaknesses in safeguarding compromise children's safety. Leaders and managers fail to follow effective procedures to ensure that all staff working with children are suitable.

"They have a poor understanding of the procedures to follow when there are concerns about staff. Staff do not know how to escalate their concerns should the designated safeguarding lead fail to act appropriately. This means that children are provided with a false sense of security.”

The report added: “Staff do not manage the times of day effectively when the routine changes.

"After lunch, children become restless, as there are too few activities available. While staff focus on cleaning, there are minimal interactions with children."

Children praised at pre-school

However, some positives were noted by inspectors, who said: "Staff promote children's personal care skills sufficiently. They make washing hands fun by singing songs. They praise children for looking for their own water bottles carefully and recognising their own photo and name.”

The report added: “Staff promote children's language skills appropriately. They have considered the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's development and provide activities to help fill the identified gaps in children's communication and language development.”

To read the report in full, visit https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk