Lodge Farm Nursery School

Lodge Farm Nursery School

Unique reference number (URN): 2840860 Address: Lodge Farm Nursery, Malmesbury Road, Kington Langley, Chippenham, SN15 5PY Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 27/03/2025 Registers: EYR Registered person: Lodge Farm Nursery School Limited

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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.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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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.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Leaders have created a highly positive environment where expectations for children's behaviour are clear, consistent and understood by all. As a result, children behave well across the setting. They show kindness, cooperation and respect, often helping one another without prompting. For example, they spray water so friends can rinse their hands or pass cutlery around the table. These everyday moments reflect an overall culture of care and collaboration shaped by leaders' focus on emotional understanding and shared routines. Staff use tailored approaches, such as personalised emotional support resources to help children understand and manage their feelings effectively.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children form warm, trusting relationships with staff, which helps them feel secure and confident. They work together successfully, learning to take turns in the baby room, experimenting with water play as a team, and supporting each other during mealtimes. Their growing independence is evident as they serve themselves food and use their cutlery with increasing skill. The children wait patiently for others, demonstrating their developing manners and consideration.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Leaders promote attendance and punctuality well, working closely with families to establish consistent routines. This ensures that all children, regardless of needs or circumstances, are able to participate fully and thrive in the setting's calm, purposeful atmosphere.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders take comprehensive action to identify potential barriers early, drawing on whole family support and strong partnerships with local charities and specialist agencies. Leaders work consistently to explore every possible avenue of support, ensuring that children's needs, whether linked to disadvantage, special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or involvement with social care, are met swiftly and effectively.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Staff know children very well as individuals. They quickly spot changes, such as when a child adjusts to a change at home, and put tailored support in place that makes a tangible difference. Leaders track these children's progress meticulously. They review interventions regularly to ensure that they remain purposeful. For example, targeted physical development support led to rapid improvements within 6 weeks. This reflects leaders' commitment to early identification and action, ensuring children are well prepared for their next steps.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders prioritise high-quality professional development and SEND training for all, including staff development opportunities with specialist providers. This empowers staff to meet children's needs confidently and consistently. Leaders provide extensive, effective support for families. They help with attendance, provide essential items, such as food bank tokens, and work closely with external partners to secure additional help. This approach ensures that children facing potential barriers to learning experience stability and sustain progress.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children show secure, age-appropriate skills across the 7 areas of learning. They communicate with growing confidence, making eye contact and sharing their thoughts with one another. Their early language development is evident as babies babble purposefully and older children describe what they notice. Children demonstrate curiosity and interest in the world around them. They look closely at what they see, such as when using binoculars to hunt for birds in forest school. They experiment confidently with physical play, ranging from sliding in different ways to building sandcastles and filling moulds.

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Achievement Expected standard

Those who experience disadvantage or face barriers to learning make appropriate progress from their starting points. They develop increasing independence as they move through the setting, selecting resources and managing tasks for themselves, such as cutting their food. Children are suitably prepared for their next stage of learning, including school. They understand their emotions, express their ideas and approach new experiences with confidence.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders typically have a clear understanding of the curriculum and how well it is taught. They monitor practice closely and use this insight to prioritise staff development. Staff plan a broad range of experiences that meet all areas of learning and respond to children's interests. They adapt provision to ensure fair access for all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face additional barriers.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders generally ensure that teaching is purposeful. Babies show an emerging love of literacy as they choose books and share them with staff, who model key words and build early communication. Staff narrate children's play confidently, but they do not always use enough open questioning. This limits opportunities for children to deepen their thinking and develop richer language.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Staff weave mathematical learning naturally through activities, such as matching wooden shapes or comparing quantities in forest school. They prioritise physical development, with children strengthening fine motor skills using small pipettes and water-spraying activities. Staff use observations to inform planning and respond to children's starting points. They use assessment information to identify what children know and can do, although this is not always used consistently to deepen learning. At times, children move quickly between activities, which means they do not always develop depth in their learning.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders demonstrate a commitment to providing high-quality education and care, and they have taken prompt, effective action to meet the requirements from the previous inspection. As a result, safeguarding practice is now secure, with staff and leaders showing confident, comprehensive knowledge of their responsibilities. Leaders prioritise staff wellbeing, and

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Needs attention

staff consistently report feeling valued and well supported. This reflects leaders' thoughtful approach to workload and team culture.

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Needs attention

Leaders place significant emphasis on professional development. Staff benefit from a comprehensive training programme that strengthens their practices, and many speak positively about the impact of this support. Leaders identify areas for improvement and take appropriate action. However, monitoring is not yet fully effective in ensuring that policies and procedures are consistently embedded in practice. For example, expectations for supervision at mealtimes are not applied consistently, which impacts on children's safety and wellbeing. The nominated individual provides clear oversight and drives the wider vision for the setting. Leaders are mindful of staff workload and wellbeing, which contributes to a positive and supportive team culture.

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Needs attention

Leaders engage closely with parents and professionals, helping children settle quickly and preparing them well for transitions. Initiatives such as developing a lending library demonstrate leaders' commitment to enriching children's experiences and strengthening home learning. Parents value the support that they receive from the setting and feel well informed about their children's progress.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Children form secure, trusting attachments with their key persons. Staff take time to understand each child's routines, preferences and home lives. Babies settle well because induction arrangements are thoughtful and responsive, and they consistently seek comfort and interaction from familiar adults. This reflects leaders' commitment to supporting children's early emotional wellbeing.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Children benefit from healthy meals and snacks and show enjoyment at mealtimes. As they move through the setting, they develop increasing independence, such as serving themselves food, using cutlery with growing skill and showing positive social behaviours at the table. They also gain an understanding of healthy lifestyles through regular outdoor play and familiar routines such as washing hands before lunch. Staff teach the children how to stay safe. For example, staff remind children to walk when indoors. Children sleep well in safe, comfortable sleep rooms where they are closely supervised.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

However, some care practices need more attention. Children's personal needs are not always met promptly. For example, runny noses sometimes go unnoticed, and handwashing is not consistently thorough. This means children do not always learn to manage their self- care as well as they could. In addition, leaders' expectations for safe supervision at mealtimes are not yet applied consistently, which affects how well children are kept safe while eating.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children arrive eager to explore, quickly settling because of the warm, secure relationships they share with staff. Even the younger children show confidence as they explore in forest school, clutching clipboards and binoculars to search for birds and greeting the alpacas. Staff gently encourage them to try new things, helping them feel safe and ready to learn.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children's curiosity is nurtured through rich outdoor experiences. They delight in potion making, smelling lavender and mixing ingredients, or squelching through mud as they learn about the working farm around them. They explore different grains grown on site and create their own games, such as drawing hopscotch grids and testing out their ideas. These experiences build children's independence, problem-solving and early thinking skills. When water stops coming through a pump, staff prompt children to work it out for themselves, and ask, 'What shall we do?' Children persevere until they succeed.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children form strong friendships and communicate confidently with one another. They negotiate roles and collaborate, for example, when working out how to move water to the top of a water station. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face additional barriers to learning are very well supported. They make progress alongside their peers and benefit from consistent, sensitive adaptations.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Behaviour is consistently positive. Children learn to identify and manage their emotions effectively. However, children's personal care needs are not always identified quickly enough, and supervision during mealtimes does not yet ensure their safety. This is an important area for improvement.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Families feel welcomed and valued. Stay and play sessions, picnics and practical support, such as oral health and potty training resource bags, help parents feel part of the community and strengthen children's sense of belonging.

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Next steps

To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage the provider must take the following action by the assigned date:

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Action Completion Date

ensure that all staff apply personal care routines and mealtime supervision consistently so that children's welfare needs are met promptly and safely 11/03/2026

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Address:

Lodge Farm Nursery Malmesbury Road, Kington Langley Chippenham SN15 5PY

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Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Address:

Registered person: Lodge Farm Nursery School Limited

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Facts and figures used on inspection

Leaders should ensure that staff give children sufficient time to explore activities in depth and use more open questioning to strengthen their thinking, communication and understanding across the curriculum. Leaders should ensure that staff deployment is effective during mealtimes to ensure that children are always within sight and hearing.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with leaders, staff, parents and children during the inspection.

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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. This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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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.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care.

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Urgent improvement

services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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