URN 2837148 · Inspected 2026-06-22 · Published 2026-07-20 · Inspector: Hayley Ruane
Clarence House Tattershall Unique reference number (URN): 2837148 Address: 27 Market Place, Tattershall, LINCOLN, LN4 4LJ Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 16/04/2025 Registers: EYR Registered person: Clarence House Day Nurseries Ltd Inspection report: 22 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. Expected standard Achievement Expected standard Overall, children develop suitable skills and knowledge that will help them to be prepared for future learning. For instance, children engage in activities to be physically active. Babies learn how to move their bodies forwards and backwards on rocking equipment, developing their core strength. Toddlers and preschool children learn how to use their hands to flatten dough instead of using a rolling pin, helping to develop the muscles in their hands. Preschool children confidently remember previous learning. This includes recalling from memory how they can make dough, such as by adding flour, salt and oil together. Overall, children are supported with their emotional well-being effectively, such as during times of transition. They visit the next room they will be attending in the nursery gradually and at different times of the day. This helps them to become familiar with staff, their surroundings and embedded routines. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities progress well from their starting points in learning. They develop social skills as they begin to interact and play alongside others. However, some children do not fully benefit from individual additional funding as it is not used to minimise gaps in their learning. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard Overall, leaders and staff are positive role models that promotes positive behaviour. For instance, they lower their bodies to children's level when they play alongside them and engage positively in their play. This encourages children to have positive attitudes to learning. Staff use different techniques with the different ages of children to help them understand behavioural expectations. For instance, staff use distraction to divert babies from for instance, grabbing other children. Toddlers and preschool children learn about the rules and boundaries. For example, staff remind them to walk indoors and to run outdoors. Children enjoy positive interactions with their peers and staff. Toddlers and pre-school children confidently express their thoughts and views to staff, who listen, helping them to feel valued. Children talk and interact with their peers as they play games and engage in imaginative play. Overall, children show good manners, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff embed routines during the day and support children with SEND to follow these. They give children clear explanations when the routine changes and help them to understand what needs to happen now and what will happen next. Staff understand the importance of children follow routines, including attending the nursery regularly. They explain the benefits to parents that includes promoting their children's development and to provide consistency for children. Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard Mealtimes are a social occasion where staff sit with children to initiate conversations and promote their safety. Staff help children to understand how to use cutlery safely to eat. They show children how to use safety knives safely to cut up fruit at snack time before providing them with cutlery during lunch time. Toddlers and preschool children independently serve Needs attention themselves lunch and are supported by staff to make healthy choices around food. Staff help children to learn further healthy habits. This includes talking to children to help them understand that milk helps to build healthy bones and teeth to give them 'beautiful smiles'. Staff adapt their interactions with children during mealtimes to meet their individual needs. For instance, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive additional encouragement to eat their food to promote their health. When some children struggle to regulate their emotions during mealtimes, staff recognise and support children during this time. For example, they provide children with comfort and use a calm voice to sing songs to them. This helps children to be calm so they can return to eating. Children show an understanding of how to keep themselves safe. For instance, they blow on their food before eating. Staff talk to children about road safety when they walk with them during visits into the community. Leaders provide parents with information about the appropriate use of screen time with their children at home. This contributes to promoting children's safety and welfare. Curriculum and teaching Expected standard Leaders and staff implement a curriculum that enables children to follow their interests and build on what they already know and can do. For instance, staff use simple and repetitive words, such as 'mix, mix, mix' when babies show an interest to use tools to stir, promoting their early speaking skills. Generally, older children listen well when staff give them instructions, such as to stand in a line to wait their turn to wash their hands. Staff provide children with experiences to develop their physical skills. This includes staff staying close to babies to promote their safety as they negotiate climbing equipment. They develop the muscles in their legs as they begin to climb, holding staff's hands for support. Staff offer older children resources to build on their play experiences. Children experiment using planks of wood to create their own obstacle courses. They move across the course, developing the strength in their bodies as they climb up objects and jump off the end. This enables older children to challenge their abilities and to take and manage risks in a safe environment. Staff weave mathematical language into children's play well. They count as toddlers stack foam bricks to build a tower, modelling how to count to five. Staff use language to describe position as they engage in activities with babies. For instance, staff move objects and explain how they go up and down. Staff show children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) how to play alongside others to help develop their social skills. This results in children with SEND playing alongside groups of children during water play without any adult support. Inclusion Needs attention Leaders do not consistently use additional funding that some children receive to support their individual needs. In addition, they do not share with key members of staff that some children are in receipt of additional funding. This means that funding is not always spent appropriately and does not help to close any gaps in children's individual learning needs, such as their speech. Staff identify children with special educational needs and/or disabilities early. Overall, they work with parents and other professionals to support children. Other professionals are invited into the nursery where they observe children and liaise with staff to help identify specific targets to help children progress in their development. This includes providing images to help children understand routines during the day. Staff typically provide children with one-to-one support to help them develop skills, such as to learn how to interact with others, supporting their social skills. This helps children to play confidently and interact with others. Staff manage transitions well when children face changes in their lives. For instance, staff invite school teachers to see children in the nursery before they move on to school. This helps children to become familiar with the adult who will care for them. Furthermore, staff liaise with parents about how they can help children to be emotionally ready when they transition from the nursery to home-school learning. Leadership and governance Needs attention Leaders do not support all staff with coaching and support to build on their practice and promote their wellbeing. For instance, some staff do not receive opportunities for one-to-one supervision. Therefore, this impacts negatively on staff morale and the care and learning they can provide for children. Furthermore, not all staff are given information about their key children who are in receipt of funding. They are not consulted as to how best to spend the funding to support children's individual needs. Therefore, additional funding that some children receive is not used effectively to enhance their experiences. Leaders reflect on some of the experiences children receive. For example, they have made changes to the garden, such as new equipment to promote children's physical skills. They intend to erect further canopies in the garden to provide children with more shade when they play outdoors to further promote sun safety. Staff inform parents about their children's day, care routines and how they can further support their children's learning at home. Staff work closely with health professionals to identify how best to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This contributes to children with SEND progressing from their starting points in learning, such as their social interactions with others. Staff help children to learn about the local community. For instance, they take children to see decorations that are displayed in houses at certain times of the year. This helps children to learn about different cultures and traditions. Children are supported to explore nature, for instance, staff ask them to collect items such as sticks and pine cones. What it's like to be a child at this setting Leaders do not support all staff to develop their personal effectiveness. For example, they do not support them through opportunities to discuss their practice and wellbeing. Therefore, this impacts negatively on the experiences children receive. Additionally, some younger children who receive additional funding do not benefit from this being spent to meet their individual needs. Children arrive happy and confidently separate from parents to be with staff, showing they feel safe and secure in the nursery. Children benefit from experiencing positive relationships with staff and their peers. Babies sit on staff's knee to look at books. They begin to copy words they hear, building on their speaking skills. Older children show enjoyment as they initiate games, such as hide and seek with their friends. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), are keen to engage in activities they choose. Children with SEND are excited to press keys on a keyboard to explore how sounds change. They learn to take turns and are supported by staff to play harmoniously together. Information is gathered from parents about children's prior learning and achievements when they start. This is used effectively to provide children with a curriculum that helps them to build on their skills and knowledge. The early identification of children's needs is established, especially for those children with SEND. This helps children with SEND to progress in their development. For instance, children are supported to understand what is happening now and next during daily routines. Children engage in activities to support their communication skills and concentration. Children's attendance is monitored and encouraged. There are procedures in place to help staff promote children's welfare. For instance, they call families if children do not arrive at their expected session time. Next steps To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage the provider must take the following actions by the assigned date: Action Completion Date ensure all staff are provided with coaching and support to promote their continuous improvement and wellbeing 22/09/2026 Inspector: Hayley Ruane About this setting Unique reference number (URN): 2837148 Address: 27 Market Place Tattershall LINCOLN LN4 4LJ Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registration date: 16/04/2025 Registered person: Clarence House Day Nurseries Ltd Register(s): EYR Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00 Local authority: Lincolnshire Action Completion Date ensure any additional funding that children receive is used effectively to enhance children's individual experiences. 22/09/2026 About this inspection The inspector spoke with leaders and staff 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. Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 22 June 2026 Children numbers Age range of children at the time of inspection 1 to 10 Total number of places 52 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. 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