URN 2795726 · Inspected 2026-06-03 · Published 2026-07-06 · Inspector: Sarah Gower-Jones
Swan Meadow Uppermill Private Day Nursery Unique reference number (URN): 2795726 Address: Swan Meadow Uppermill Nursery, The Park, High Street, Uppermill, OL3 6AP Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 23/07/2024 Registers: EYR Registered person: Swan Meadow Private Day Nursery Limited Inspection report: 3 June 2026 Exceptional Strong standard Expected standard Needs attention Urgent improvement 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. How we evaluate safeguarding When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes: 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. Strong standard Achievement Strong standard All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or barriers to their learning, develop a wide range of key skills and knowledge across the curriculum and achieve well from their starting points. Children behave well and show a secure understanding of the expectations of the nursery. They build positive relationships and show an understanding of their own and other's feelings. Children display confidence and independence in their self-care skills. Younger children help themselves to a drink when they are thirsty and older children skilfully serve themselves at mealtimes. Children display impressive physical skills in the outdoor space. They throw balls with accuracy and balance carefully when moving across a set of stepping stones. Children are confident when speaking to their friends and to adults in the nursery. Babies are able to make their needs known and older children are encouraged to make decisions about their learning and self-care, for example, whether they need to put a coat on when going outside. As a result, children are very well prepared for the next stage in their learning, including the move to school. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard Leaders ensure that warm, trusting and respectful relationships are at the heart of everything in this nursery. There are clear expectations for children's behaviour, which are effectively communicated and well-understood by all children. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or barriers to their learning benefit from thoughtful, personalised support for their behaviour. As a result, all children behave very well. They are relaxed, polite and thoroughly enjoy their time at the nursery. Children show highly positive attitudes to learning. For example, they are highly focussed as they take part in an experiment. Children watch with anticipation, as staff help them to use a pipette to drop tiny drops of colour into jars of water. They are full of excitement as they discuss what they can see. Children listen intently and with great concentration as the jars are tapped, they are eager to discuss the different pitch of sounds that the jars make. Children respond positively to the routines which leaders and staff have developed. Babies are relaxed and contented as they settle down to sleep, under the careful watch of staff. Older children wait politely at lunchtime as their friends serve themselves and pour their water. This demonstrates children's secure understanding of the routines and expectations in the nursery. Leaders work with families to ensure regular attendance and punctuality. They monitor patterns closely in order to support children to engage consistently in their learning. Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard Leaders prioritise children's welfare and wellbeing by providing a supportive, caring and highly nurturing environment. Care practices meet children's individual needs effectively, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those who are disadvantaged and those known to children's social care. Staff adapt routines and provide additional support where needed, for example, by supporting children to take part in mealtime routines with additional carefully chosen resources. Children form secure relationships with the kind and caring staff. Babies enjoy lots of cuddles as they snuggle up to listen to a story with staff. Older children seek and are given reassurance and encouragement to try new things, or to take risks, such as balancing on the bikes in the outdoor area. This effectively supports children to develop their independence and self-confidence. Staff support children to recognise and manage their emotions. They explore how children are feeling, using books and toys to teach the language of feelings in an age-appropriate way. Children develop a clear understanding of health, safety and wellbeing. They learn how to cross the road safely and know what to do if they are worried about something which they have seen online. Healthy lifestyles are well promoted. Children benefit from the healthy and appetising meals cooked at the nursery, carefully planned by leaders and the nursery's cook. They discuss the vegetables in the sauce that they are eating at lunchtime and why it is important to drink plenty of water. This helps children to build healthy habits for their future. Curriculum and teaching Strong standard Leaders and staff have worked together to develop an exciting and interesting curriculum which meets the needs of all children. Children with any additional needs benefit from a personalised curriculum broken down into smaller steps. Leaders gather detailed information about children's starting points and ensure that learning activities are sharply focussed on supporting all children to make their next steps. Communication and language is at the heart of all learning in the nursery. The rooms buzz with chatter, laughter and interesting conversations. Staff skilfully engage all children, speaking slowly, introducing new vocabulary and giving children plenty of time to think about what has been said and to reply. Children have great fun as they squeeze and shape play dough, developing their fine motor skills and the muscles in their hands. Staff encourage them to roll and shape the dough and to use the differently shaped cutters. Children and staff discuss the common shapes, such as circles and squares and the differences between them. This develops children's understanding of early mathematics well. Babies benefit from warm and positive back and forth interactions and lots of conversations with staff. Babies laugh and clap, showing their enjoyment during a circle time activity with coloured scarves. They join in enthusiastically with the familiar rhymes and songs and giggle as they throw the scarves up into the air. These thoughtfully planned activities effectively support the development of children's physical skills and early communication and language. Inclusion Strong standard Leaders and staff work in a close and positive partnership with parents right from the start to identify any additional needs which children may have. Leaders have a sharp focus on rapidly identifying any additional support or adaptations which children may need. They are pro-active in working with other professionals such as speech and language therapists or area special educational needs and disabilities coordinator in order to access additional support and professional advice. This ensures that leaders and staff plan a curriculum which successfully meets the needs of all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders and staff thoughtfully tailor the curriculum for children who need additional support with their early language. For example, staff learn and use words in children's home language which supports children's emotional security and enables them to settle quickly. Leaders and staff work in a close partnership with other agencies to access and signpost further support for children and families. For example, leaders signpost workshops for parents to support them to better understand children's behaviour. Additional funding is used carefully to support children to overcome any barriers to learning. Children benefit from additional resources and small group sessions. Leaders are rigorous in reviewing the impact of any additional funding or support. This ensures that all children benefit from consistently highly effective support for their learning. Leadership and governance Strong standard Leaders are highly committed to meeting the requirements of the early years foundation stage and improving outcomes for all children. They have an accurate understanding of the nursery's strengths and a sharp focus on any areas for development. They work in a positive partnership with leaders of other nurseries to share good practice and constantly challenge themselves to improve the already excellent practice in the nursery still further. Leaders prioritise staff development through regular supervision and ongoing discussions about professional practice. Leaders have undertaken additional training to enable them to further support staff well-being. Staff report that that they appreciate initiatives such as the time set aside each week for 'tea and a chat' with leaders and that they enjoy being part of such a happy and supportive team. This support for staff professional growth and personal well-being ensures that the quality of teaching and care continues to develop and improve. Leaders build effective partnerships with parents and external agencies. Parents are highly appreciative of the care and learning which takes place at the nursery. They describe staff and leaders as 'supportive and patient' and say that their children are happy, settled and making very secure progress. Well-planned transitions and strong links with other settings ensure children and families are well prepared and supported for their next move, such as starting school. What it's like to be a child at this setting All children are well supported to become happy, curious and confident learners at this warm and welcoming nursery. Children benefit from an exciting and interesting curriculum which is carefully tailored to meet their individual needs. Babies are happy and settled as they play with coloured rice in a tray. Staff and babies laugh together as they pick up handfuls of rice and let it trickle through their fingers. Babies are spellbound as they watch staff hold up handfuls of rice and then allow it to cascade down into the tray. Staff take every opportunity to introduce new vocabulary and to describe to the babies what is happening. This supports the effective development of their early language and their listening skills well. Children enjoy walking to the nearby library. They put their coats on independently and know to wait with staff until it is safe to cross over the path, carefully looking out for traffic. Children politely greet the library staff, choose a book and are quickly absorbed in their reading. These activities help children to develop their independence and self-confidence, which prepares them well for the next steps, such as starting school. Children behave very well at the nursery. Outside, children play co-operatively together. They help their friends as they balance across stepping stones and work together to lift a pipe and drop balls into the top, laughing in delight as the balls roll out of the end of the pipe. At mealtimes, children sit in small groups. They politely wait their turn to serve themselves and say 'please' and 'thank you' to their friends and staff without being reminded. Children benefit from a wide variety of trips and visits in the local area. They walk to the shops to buy ingredients for cooking; they visit the local police station and the nearby post office. On Remembrance Day, the children made a poppy wreath which they laid at the local war memorial. These thoughtfully planned experiences help to develop children's appreciation of people who help them and deepen their understanding of the local community and the world around them. Next steps Leaders should sustain their work to ensure continued improvement and high standards. They should focus on creating a transformational impact on the outcomes and experiences of disadvantaged children, those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those who are known (or previously known) to children's social care, and those who may face other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing. Inspector: Sarah Gower-Jones About this setting Unique reference number (URN): 2795726 Address: Swan Meadow Uppermill Nursery The Park, High Street Uppermill OL3 6AP Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registration date: 23/07/2024 Registered person: Swan Meadow Private Day Nursery Limited Register(s): EYR Operating hours: Local authority: Oldham Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 3 June 2026 About this inspection The inspector/inspectors spoke with leaders, practitioners, the special educational needs coordinator and parents during the 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. Children numbers Age range of children at the time of inspection 0 to 3 Total number of places 40 Our grades explained Exceptional Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it. Strong standard The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them. 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. Needs attention The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements. Urgent improvement The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care. The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspects 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. 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. 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