Bluebells Day Nursery & Preschool

Bluebells Day Nursery & Preschool

Unique reference number (URN): 2885083 Address: Sacred Heart Church Hall, Streetend Road, Chatham, Kent, ME5 0AA Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 09/01/2026 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: Bluebells Childcare Services Ltd

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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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Achievement Needs attention

Overall, children are making some progress in their learning and development from their individual starting points. This is particularly evident in their personal, social and emotional development as they settle into nursery life well.

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Achievement Needs attention

Mostly, children benefit from interactions with staff and their peers to support their communication and language development. Children really enjoy using the garden to support their physical development and are animated when talking about what they would like to do. For example, they challenge themselves as they climb up to use the slide. However, due to the weaknesses in the curriculum and teaching, not all children receive learning opportunities that fully enhance their development in all areas of learning. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with barriers to achievement. This leaves some children less well prepared to start school than others.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Leaders work with families on the importance of giving children the opportunity to spend time at nursery. This promotes attendance effectively. Mostly, staff support children's behaviour appropriately. For example, staff address any unwanted behaviour and are aware of children who may struggle with emotional regulation. Staff promote positive manners. However, at times, staff do not fully role model the nursery behaviour values or use a wide enough range of strategies to ensure that all children fully understand what is expected of them. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and barriers to achievement. At times, this includes communicating effectively in an age or developmentally appropriately way to support children appropriately.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Staff use fun ways to help children learn the routine when they go in the garden. For instance, children enthusiastically join in with staff to the actions of a rhyme. Children and staff form close bonds. For example, babies go to staff to share a toy of interest to them. Children build appropriate relationships and enjoy each other's company. For example, children learn to take turns and kick a ball back and forth in the garden.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Overall, leaders and staff implement appropriate policies and procedures to support children's welfare and wellbeing. For example, individual routines are followed for babies' and children's sleep, and staff carefully check on them for their safety and wellbeing. Children enjoy healthy mealtimes, and adaptations are made for children with dietary or food preferences appropriately. However, there are limited learning opportunities during these times. For example, snack time is focused on giving children the opportunity to eat preselected pre-cut food they have been given and to have a drink of water from a bottle. This aspect of the curriculum impacts opportunities that all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who have barriers to achievement, have to extend their skills further. Children learn suitably about their personal hygiene skills as part of keeping themselves

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

safe. For example, they know how to manage the spread of germs and cough into their arm should they need to. The key-person arrangements to support children's emotional development are secure. For instance, babies enjoy close cuddles with staff as they fall asleep, and older children feel secure in the company of staff.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Children have the opportunity to take part in daily activities, and these generally cover all areas of learning. For example, toddlers explore paint and learn to manipulate dough. However, the overall curriculum is not always planned or sequenced well enough to ensure that children's individual learning needs are suitably met at all times. This includes for children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face barriers to learning. Older children are often taught in large groups, and staff are not able to adapt their teaching to meet the needs of all children. This means that children's engagement in learning is variable. At times, learning is happening more by chance, including for mathematical and communication and language development, as there is not a precise enough focus on helping children to gain new skills that are relevant to them.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Staff monitor children's development to assess the progress they are making, and children have planned next steps in their learning. They are aware of where children require further support. However, next steps are often too broad and not always taken into consideration or supported during planned activities. This means that children's development is not consistently supported to fully benefit them.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Staff identify children who may need further support, due to a range of factors, through observations. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), those who face barriers to achievement or children who speak English as an additional language. Overall, staff share some information with parents, but conversations are not always in enough depth to learn more about children's experiences at home to give a thorough understanding of their development.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders have received training in order to fulfil their roles to support children with SEND and those with barriers to achievement. Leaders engage with other professionals to receive further guidance and support. Upon review of children's progress, staff share positive steps made by children when implementing agreed strategies. However, the implementation of the agreed strategies is inconsistent. Weaknesses in the curriculum and teaching for children with SEND and barriers to achievement mean that there is not enough focus on children learning new skills through activities. In addition, before external professional input, there is less support for children that is fully effective. This limits the removal of barriers children face in order to reach their full potential.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders have worked hard to develop aspects of practice that were previously highlighted and, overall, standards within the nursery have improved. For example, staff to child ratios have remained consistent and the overall floor space available for children has been developed to ensure that children have the room to play. However, leaders are making limited assessments about the quality of care and learning at the setting. They have not identified aspects of the curriculum and teaching that need further development, which results in inconsistent learning opportunities for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities or barriers to achievement.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Staff report that they now have regular opportunities to share their ideas and views with leaders, for example through staff meetings. Staff report positive levels of wellbeing. They feel that their opinions are valued and taken into consideration by leaders. Staff complete training as part of their induction to the nursery to ensure that they have an appropriate understanding of their roles.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Parents comment that their children enjoy attending nursery and know that there are skills their children learn. However, they are not always sure of what staff are doing at the setting to support their children's individual learning.

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Compulsory Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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Voluntary Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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

Children enjoy attending the nursery. They are warmly greeted by staff, and children easily separate from parents. Staff check in with parents to see how children are. Children's medical needs are well supported, and parents are informed if their children have an accident. Parents appreciate the opportunity to access photos of their children's day via an app. However, further in-depth discussions to fully understand children's experiences at home do not always take place to further support children at nursery.

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

Children's learning experiences vary, as the curriculum does not fully support their individual needs at all times. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities or children with barriers to achievement do not consistently have their individual circumstances supported well enough to remove all barriers to their achievement. Overall, children enjoy taking part in activities, for example by making Easter wreaths and playing games. Children practise their fine motor skills by learning to use pegs to hold a picture and pass it to their friends. This supports their overall physical development well. Children gain some independence, such as getting their coats to go outside and washing their hands ready for snack. However, activities are often in large groups, and children do not fully benefit from teaching that supports their individual developmental needs. The result is that, at times, not

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

all children benefit from the teaching taking place, as the activity does not consistently maintain their interest throughout.

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

Generally, children gain some skills needed for their next stage of learning.

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

Children build positive relationships with staff and each other. Staff warmly praise children's achievements. At times, staff do not fully role model what is expected of children and consider further ways to support children's behaviour. This does not give children clear messages about what is expected of them.

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Inspector:

Attendance is promoted to ensure that children are able to contribute and enjoy their time at nursery.

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Next steps

To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage and Childcare Register the provider must take the following actions by the assigned date:

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Action Completion Date

review the curriculum so that it covers all areas of learning and support staff to implement it effectively, to support all children to make progress in their learning and development 01/05/2026

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Action Completion Date

support and develop the inclusive approach for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and barriers to achievement to fully support them to make progress 01/05/2026

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Action Completion Date

increase partnership working with parents to ensure all relevant information is known and understood, in order to fully support children at nursery 01/05/2026

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Action Completion Date

implement an approach to supporting children's behaviour, that is fully role modelled by staff, to ensure children fully understand the behaviour expectations 01/05/2026

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Action Completion Date

develop monitoring of staff practice further to more closely identify areas of teaching that can be further developed to improve the overall quality of teaching 01/05/2026

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with parents, leaders and practitioners 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. Sarah Taylor-Smith

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Address:

Sacred Heart Church Hall Streetend Road Chatham Kent ME5 0AA

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Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Address:

Registered person: Bluebells Childcare Services Ltd

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Address:

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 18:00

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Facts and figures used on inspection

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. services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

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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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