Bovan Creek

Bovan Creek

Unique reference number (URN): 2725661 Address: 1 Lady Woottons Green, Canterbury, CT1 1NG Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 10/03/2023 Registers: EYR Registered person: Bovan Creek Ltd

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

Achievement Needs attention

Children receive varying learning experiences across the nursery, which means that their opportunities for achievement are not consistent enough. This is more evident for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities or those with barriers to achievement. Despite this, children learn some skills in readiness for moving on to school. For example, staff help to build children's imaginary play skills with enthusiastic engagement as they help build children's plans through prompts and discussion. This helps children learn to extend their ideas and vocabulary and supports their concentration.

p.2

Achievement Needs attention

Mostly, where children have more opportunities to take part in activities, children develop their skills. For example, older children demonstrate suitable pencil control and show confidence in drawing. Children practise their coordination and strength as they learn to climb steps up to the slide. These appropriately support children's large and small muscle movements as part of their overall physical development.

p.2

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

The inconsistencies in how children's behaviour is understood and supported impact on their experiences at nursery. Children's engagement and enthusiasm for learning varies, as not all children are always engaged in purposeful play and learning. Not all children are given realistic behaviour expectations in relation to their age and stage of development. Staff do not consistently explain to children to help them learn what is expected of them. When they do give explanations, it is not in a way that children can understand. This is particularly evident for younger children and for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities or barriers to learning. Mostly, staff are positive role models for children and promote manners. For example, older children are praised for listening to staff when they are reminded to walk inside.

p.2

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Older children show high levels of confidence and initiate conversations. They explore their room with interest. For example, they play games together, colour and enjoy counting activities with staff.

p.2

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Leaders have positive strategies in place to support children's attendance at nursery. They have procedures to follow up on any non-attendance to understand further why children are not able to attend nursery.

p.2

Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Not all staff consistently recognise when children's wellbeing and engagement are impacted. For example, children are often sat down at the table for extensive periods for their age before lunch is served. Staff do not appear to recognise this and do not take appropriate action. This leads to mealtimes lacking in support and learning opportunities for children being limited. This particularly impacts children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. The meals on offer for children are healthy, and suitable adaptations are made for dietary allergies and requirements. Staff support children to have opportunities for outside play. This helps to positively support children's overall health.

p.2

Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Children develop secure attachments with staff. Overall, staff know individual children well and their care needs. For example, staff working with babies are aware of their usual sleep patterns and know if they are not feeling themselves. Children form friendships with each other and learn to negotiate games and play together. For example, older children play cooperatively in small groups and seamlessly move around the room to follow their interests.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

The quality of children's learning experiences varies across the nursery. The curriculum that is in place is not fully understood by staff. Leaders are ambitious and have plans to develop the curriculum with a specific teaching approach, but these are in the early stages. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities lack support to access the full range of learning opportunities that are on offer.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Teaching varies within the nursery. Some children have higher quality play and learning opportunities than others. For example, some staff actively engage children in activities such as sensory and messy play. Children become engrossed in creative artwork as they use a range of materials, such as glue and glitter. Some staff recognise when children need support to engage in purposeful play. However, this is not consistent in all rooms, where some staff follow children around tidying up and interactions are more limited.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Some children enjoy sharing books with staff, who read to them and engage children in conversation. This helps children to extend their vocabulary and understanding of language. In these instances, staff talk about new words children know and how they can extend their learning further.

p.3

Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders have high ambitions for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and for children with barriers to achievement or wellbeing and aim to be inclusive. However, some children with SEND do not have enough support in place to ensure that their needs are consistently met at all times.

p.3

Inclusion Needs attention

Staff mostly identify where children need additional support. This may be from information shared by parents or through observation and tracking of children's development. Leaders with responsibility for working with children with SEND or children with barriers to achievement are actively working with external agencies for advice and support. There are some personalised and individual support plans in place to meet some of the needs of children. However, at this stage, not all children's needs are fully understood. This means that interventions have limited impact on children's everyday experiences and do not consistently help staff give children the support they need to make the most of their time at nursery.

p.3

Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders showed positive engagement during the inspection and were able to recognise areas for improvement through shared observations and discussions. However, leaders were not aware of all areas in need of development before this took place, such as the lack of appropriate strategies and support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and the variations in the implementation of the curriculum and teaching. The support and coaching available for staff does not offer enough consistent support to help to identify the overall quality of the nursery or to clearly identify all areas for improvement. However, leaders have focused recent staff support on wellbeing. Staff have opportunities to take part in professional development. However, without knowing all of the key areas of development within the nursery, leaders are not able to focus staff development in areas that are effective.

p.4

Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders aim to make the best possible decisions based on children's wellbeing and welfare. For example, they monitor the temperature levels in each room to ensure that children remain safe on hotter days.

p.4

Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders establish suitable relationships with other professionals involved in supporting individual children. They are aware of seeking guidance and support where needed. Overall, parents' feedback is positive. Parents share that their children like the staff and learn new songs while at nursery. However, there is further development needed to ensure that parents are fully informed and understand children's experiences while at nursery.

p.4

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

Children at nursery receive varying experiences on their learning journey. Some children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with barriers to achievement, do not have enough support to ensure that their needs are fully met. In addition, the quality of teaching and the curriculum that children receive are not consistent. Some children receive support to engage and frequently learn and practice new skills. For example, children learn mathematical language to help them describe and differentiate between shapes. Other children have fewer opportunities for their development to be supported and, at times, their play lacks purpose. This means that achievement is variable and children do not have consistent opportunities to thrive.

p.4

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

Children have bonds with staff and learn to play well with other children. Care needs such as nappy changing and sleep routines are supported well. This supports them to feel settled and a sense of belonging. However, during mealtimes for example, children often face long periods waiting, and staff do not consistently recognise the inappropriateness of this or take steps to support children.

p.4

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

The understanding of children's behaviour is inconsistent. Children's behaviour is not always understood and supported in relation to their age and stage of development. This means that they are not always clear about what is expected of them. However, older children receive praise and display suitable behaviour.

p.5

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

Children's best interests are at the centre of leaders' decision-making, such as the constant monitoring of room temperatures in hot weather. However, they are not fully aware of all areas to focus development within the setting through support for staff. Leaders promote attendance to support children's time at nursery.

p.5

Next steps

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

p.5

Action Completion Date

take steps to further develop strategies and train staff to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities to ensure that all children's individual needs are consistently met and barriers to achievement are reduced 01/10/2026

p.5

Action Completion Date

create a clear curriculum that is well sequenced across the nursery so that all children benefit from consistent teaching and learning opportunities 01/10/2026

p.5

Action Completion Date

take steps to ensure a consistent approach to supporting children's behaviour and understanding in an age-appropriate manner for all children across the nursery 01/10/2026

p.5

Action Completion Date

ensure that mealtimes are well planned to meet the wellbeing needs of all children 01/10/2026

p.5

Action Completion Date

take steps to develop supervision for staff to ensure that a clear overview of the quality of practice is understood in order to take active steps to raise the quality of the overall provision 01/10/2026

p.5

Action Completion Date

ensure that partnership working with parents fully supports children's learning at nursery to enhance their overall development. 01/10/2026

p.5

Address:

1 Lady Woottons Green Canterbury CT1 1NG

p.6

Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

p.6

Address:

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 17:00

p.6

Facts and figures used on inspection

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

p.6

About this inspection

The inspector spoke with leaders, practitioners, the special educational needs coordinator, parents and children 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.

p.6

About this inspection

We carried out this inspection as a result of a risk assessment, following information we received about the provider. The provider will be able to give parents further information about this. This data is from 29 July 2026

p.6

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

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 .

p.8

Urgent improvement

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Urgent improvement

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Urgent improvement

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

p.8