Summary
What we read, and from where
Click a reading to see it highlighted in the report.
- Achievement verified
Expected standard
- Behaviour, attitudes and routines verified
Strong standard
- Children's welfare and wellbeing verified
Strong standard
- Curriculum and teaching verified
Expected standard
- Inclusion verified
Strong standard
- Leadership and governance verified
Strong standard
- Framework verified
Report card
- Group verified
Little Owls (Scunthorpe) Limited
- Inspection datesingle source
27 Jan 2026
- Inspectors verified
Andrew Clark
- Postcode verified
DN17 2JL
- Name on report verified
Little Owls Scunthorpe Ltd
- Safeguarding verified
Met
- URN verified
2747050
Deep dive
What this report says
In plain English
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Grade profile
Each judgement on its scale, weakest to strongest.
- AchievementExpected
- Behaviour, attitudes and routinesStrong
- Children's welfare and wellbeingStrong
- Curriculum and teachingExpected
- InclusionStrong
- Leadership and governanceStrong
Tone of the report
How positive or critical the inspectors' language is, from the words they chose. No AI involved.
In line with other reports of this type.
How the report reads, start to finish
Every paragraph in order, sized by length. Tap one to see it on the page.
Strengths
Quoted from the report. Tap to see it on the page.
- Leaders and staff have high expectations for children's positive behaviour and attitudes throughout the nursery. p.2
- The experienced and well-qualified leadership team has focused on creating a strongly inclusive, caring and engaging environment. p.3
- Staff establish clear and consistent routines from the start that help to ensure babies and children learn to feel confident and assured in the nursery. p.2
- Staff are consistently positive role models. p.2
- Children are very well behaved and show increasing awareness and care for others. p.2
Concerns
Quoted from the report. Tap to see it on the page.
No strong criticism found.
Next steps
Quoted from the report. Tap to see it on the page.
- This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. p.4
- This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register. p.5
- Leaders should focus sharply on the improvements planned to support newer members of staff, so high-quality teaching practice is fully embedded to continually enrich children's learning experiences and accelerate their progress. p.6
What the report dwells on
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Anatomy of the report
How the report is built, against others of the same type and grade.
- Pages
- 8
- Words of findings
- 1,488
- about usual (typical 1698)
- Reading level
- Hard
- Flesch 40, typical 43
- Average sentence
- 18 words
- Next steps
- 3
- typical 3
- Hedged sentences
- 4%
- “some”, “not always”, “most”…
Where the words go
Full report text
Little Owls Scunthorpe Ltd
Unique reference number (URN): 2747050 Address: Side By Side, South Leys Campus, Enderby Road, Scunthorpe, DN17 2JL Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 03/08/2023 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: Little Owls (Scunthorpe) Limited
p.1
Safeguarding standards met
The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.
p.1
How we evaluate safeguarding
When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:
p.1
How we evaluate safeguarding
Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.
p.1
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard
Leaders and staff have high expectations for children's positive behaviour and attitudes throughout the nursery. Staff establish clear and consistent routines from the start that help to ensure babies and children learn to feel confident and assured in the nursery. Staff work closely with parents to reflect home routines, such as sleep and nappy changing procedures, to help babies and young children start their nursery life with confidence and security. Staff are consistently positive role models. They listen well to children, for example, and help children to make decisions about their play and learning. Children are very well behaved and show increasing awareness and care for others.
p.2
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard
Staff plan systematically to help children who find it hard to recognise others' needs to share and take turns. For instance, babies learn to choose books together and understand that they cannot all be read at the same time. Older children take turns to mix and stir their sensory play buns outdoors. Staff work with parents to ensure that children attend regularly and are on time. There are well-established routines for staff and parents to communicate if there are any unexplained absences.
p.2
Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard
Leaders establish an inclusive and caring ethos throughout the nursery. The support and care all children receive, including those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged and vulnerable children, is built on accurate assessments of their wellbeing needs. These processes precisely identify children's individual learning and development needs. Leaders ensure that the children's key workers and other staff receive carefully matched training to understand and support those who need additional help. All groups of children learn to be confident and happy as a result.
p.2
Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard
Staff strongly support and promote all aspects of children's welfare and wellbeing. For example, children's wellbeing is systematically enriched through regular dance and other physical activities that build children's strength and body control, nutritious snacks and healthy eating role play in the mud kitchen. Consequently, children learn the value of regular exercise and healthy food choices. They learn to wash their hands regularly before meals and after toileting. Staff provide guidance to parents to support many aspects of children's welfare, such as weaning, sleep and behaviour management. Staff make strong use of routines and rewards to help children achieve independence and self-awareness. Children know, for example, how to work together to leave their play area tidy before they start their next activity.
p.2
Inclusion Strong standard
Leaders create a strongly inclusive culture within the setting and the wider community. Staff know all the children in their care well. They build strong bonds with babies and children and accurately assess their needs and achievements. Staff swiftly identify any gaps in children's learning at an early stage and work closely with parents and senior staff to identify and plan
p.2
Expected standard
for the next steps in the children's development. Leaders are rigorous in ensuring that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), disadvantaged and vulnerable children receive the prompt support they need to achieve their potential overall. For example, they support staff to access high-quality specific training and guidance from other educational and medical professionals. They carefully consider the use of additional funding, such as early years pupil premium funding, to improve outcomes and raise children's achievement, for example through providing toys closely matched to personal interests and sensory activities that reduce gaps in children's experiences.
p.3
Expected standard
Leaders have strategically reviewed all aspects of the provision to make sure that the environment supports a fully inclusive setting. For example, they have created a high-quality safe and quiet place for children, including those with SEND, who sometimes find larger classroom spaces challenging.
p.3
Leadership and governance Strong standard
The experienced and well-qualified leadership team has focused on creating a strongly inclusive, caring and engaging environment. Leaders have a clear understanding of the nursery's strengths and weaknesses. They have thoughtfully identified and started implementing a programme of professional development and support for newer members of staff. There are robust procedures to gather the views of parents, children and staff through, for instance, regular focused questionnaires and discussions to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of the nursery. Leaders and other senior staff work towards challenging actions, such as strengthening the good practice in inclusion and provision for babies, to have a sustained impact on children's achievement and wellbeing. They support this through strategic research, training and links with the local community. For example, they have developed increasingly sharply focused procedures based on high level training to monitor
p.3
Leadership and governance Strong standard
teaching and learning and increasingly address the identified inconsistencies and raise achievement to the highest standards for all staff.
p.3
Leadership and governance Strong standard
Leaders value staff's wellbeing and welfare. They use staff's self-evaluation, induction procedures, regular supervision discussions, staff meetings and training days to support and motivate staff. As a result, staff morale is high, and they feel valued. The leadership has established good relationships with other agencies, such as educational psychological services and social services, to ensure all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, disadvantaged and looked after children, are prepared for their future learning.
p.3
Achievement Expected standard
Children make progress from their starting points and learn to express themselves clearly and with confidence. They benefit from regular opportunities to explore books and stories, which help them learn about the world around them. For instance, children learn about arctic conditions and the animals that live there through well-chosen stories. However, very occasionally, children do not make the very best progress they are capable of when teaching is not sharply matched to their needs, for example when the resources, such as flash cards or written numbers, are too difficult for children to understand and remember.
p.3
Achievement Expected standard
Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and other vulnerable learners make positive progress as they build their communication skills in small, manageable steps, including using Makaton and other communication strategies. They make progress that prepares them well for the next stage in their learning. Children benefit from support that helps them to build securely on what they already know and can do.
p.4
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Leaders have established an imaginative and systematic curriculum that supports children to build on earlier learning from their individual starting points. Staff make effective use of assessment to meet children's needs, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged children. Leaders have effective induction procedures to support staff, several of whom are new to the nursery, to develop the knowledge and understanding to support children's learning and development overall. However, occasionally, some staff do not adjust their teaching sharply enough to fully embed new learning and deepen understanding. For example, sometimes, they do not vary their questions to check all children's understanding and occasionally resources are too complex or undemanding.
p.4
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Staff in the baby room are well trained in early communication skills, safe sleeping, feeding and weaning to provide a secure foundation for future learning. Staff are knowledgeable and confident in building children's vocabulary and their knowledge of the world. For example, young children become inquisitive communicators as they handle different textures in their sensory play. Older children use zebra crossings and are aware of other vehicle uses in their physical role play.
p.4
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Children's mathematical skills are systematically developed. For example, younger children learn to securely count and match quantities to 5. Older children use their strong knowledge of numbers to compare weights and balance scales with toy animals.
p.4
Compulsory Childcare Register requirements
This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register.
p.4
Register
When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:
p.4
Voluntary Childcare Register requirements
This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register.
p.5
Register
When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:
p.5
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children are very happy throughout their time in this stimulating and constantly developing nursery. They make progress from their individual starting points in all areas of learning. Overall, children are prepared well for the next stage in their learning, including starting school. Staff work closely with babies and their families, for instance to establish early routines that help babies to feel safe and confident.
p.5
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, become independent and confident as they learn to follow instructions safely and organise their own play. They learn to be patient and take turns in their games and support each other. Babies learn to play alongside other children and build their early physical and sensory skills as they sprinkle rice and other tactile substances through their fingers. Children who find it difficult to understand and communicate their own feelings are skilfully helped to identify and manage their own emotions. Children feel valued.
p.5
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Babies learn to listen, enjoy and join in with the many familiar action songs, nursery rhymes and stories staff share with them. This helps to establish a firm basis for emerging language skills. Older children build on this knowledge and understanding through, for example, games and group activities that help them recognise rhymes and initial sounds of words. They extend their vocabulary and enjoy talking about exotic fruits such as pineapples and mangoes they have explored through stories and creative activities. Children make strong
p.5
Address:
Side By Side South Leys Campus, Enderby Road Scunthorpe DN17 2JL
p.6
Address:
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
p.6
Address:
Registered person: Little Owls (Scunthorpe) Limited
p.6
Address:
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 17:00 progress in their understanding of early mathematical skills and language as they explain that one side of the weighing scale 'is the heaviest because it is the lowest'.
p.6
Next steps
Leaders should focus sharply on the improvements planned to support newer members of staff, so high-quality teaching practice is fully embedded to continually enrich children's learning experiences and accelerate their progress.
p.6
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with children, leaders, the special educational needs coordinators, practitioners and some parents during the inspection.
p.6
About this inspection
We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage. Local authority: North Lincolnshire
p.6
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
p.7
Exceptional
Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.
p.7
Strong standard
The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.
p.7
Expected standard
The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.
p.7
Needs attention
The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.
p.7
Urgent improvement
The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care. services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.
p.7
Urgent improvement
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p.8
Urgent improvement
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p.8
Urgent improvement
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Urgent improvement
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