URN 2780822 · Inspected 2026-04-30 · Published 2026-07-17 · Inspector: Gareth Cotterell Trina Lynskey
Clockhouse Childcare Unique reference number (URN): 2780822 Address: Clock House, 149 Stamford Hill, London, N16 5LG Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 02/04/2024 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: Clockhouse Childcare Ltd Inspection report: 30 April 2026 Exceptional Strong standard Expected standard Needs attention Urgent improvement Urgent improvement Safeguarding standards not met Leaders have not ensured that there is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that adequately protects children from harm. Leaders do not make sure all staff understand their safeguarding responsibilities, including whistleblowing procedures. Some staff have limited or no English, which increases the risk that concerns may not be understood, communicated or reported appropriately. Leaders have failed to follow the mandatory vetting and suitability checking procedures, including Disclosure and Barring Service checks to ensure that staff are suitable to work with children. Leaders do not have an adequate understanding of their duty to check and monitor the ongoing suitability of all staff. Leaders are unaware of their safeguarding responsibilities. Such weakness in leadership oversight of safeguarding compromises the safety and welfare of children. 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. Achievement Urgent improvement Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, do not achieve well from their individual starting points. For example, babies are not nurtured or given appropriate resources to enable them to explore and learn. Staff do not provide important language during play with babies; therefore, babies do not pick up vocal patterns in speech. Children typically are not taught in English. In some rooms, play is sometimes narrated with single words of English. Consequently, children mainly communicate by gesturing, tapping adults for attention or crying and screaming. Across the nursery, interactions between children are limited, with some only engaging in solitary play. Some older children have a basic awareness of communication during tabletop activities and during mealtimes. Occasionally, children smile or wave at adults, and a few staff members vary their vocal tone to express praise and happiness. However, these positive interactions are infrequent. Typically, staff speak mainly to one another while organising the nursery day rather than engaging meaningfully with the children. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Urgent improvement Leaders and staff do not promote attendance or punctuality at this nursery. Children's start and finish times do not match the session times. When children are absent, leaders and staff do not follow up, instead making assumptions around the lack of attendance. This does not promote children's wellbeing and does not prepare children for the next step in their education. Parental partnerships are weak. Leaders do not engage with parents to ensure punctual drop off and pick up. As a result, children do not access their full entitlement, and this limits their opportunities to develop age-appropriate social and communication skills. Routines are not fully embedded at the nursery. Lunchtime is loosely organised, but delays in preparation and arrival of meals mean that children are sat waiting for a long time. Staff do not meaningfully engage with children during this time, and this negatively impacts behaviour. Children begin to shout, scream and cry because they are hungry. Leaders and staff do not consider the age and stage of the children in their care. For example, in the room for babies, children are put in high chairs one by one. Other babies are left to crawl along the floor under the staff's feet. On occasion, the babies drag their dummies along the floor and then put them back in their mouths. This increases the risk of illness and the spread of germs. Children's welfare and wellbeing Urgent improvement Children at this nursery do not develop their social and emotional skills at an age- appropriate level. They do not develop the skills to explain what they need to support their emotional health. Staff do not teach children how to form relationships with other children or cooperate with others. Children do not understand the routine of the nursery, and, as a result, do not develop independent skills they need for future learning. Children in the room for babies are often left to cry and self-soothe. Not all staff form warm, responsive relationships with the children. Very often, staff are preoccupied organising resources and mealtimes. They are reactive to children's needs only when children are already upset. Leaders have not embedded the key-person system. Therefore, some staff are unsure which children they are responsible for. Leaders have not made sure that staff know and understand children's food allergies and intolerances. They have failed to ensure allergy action plans for managing children's known allergies and intolerances are kept up to date and shared with staff responsible for meeting their needs. Staff follow safer eating guidelines, but during mealtimes there are limited interactions between staff and children. Leaders do not check that staff understand their duties for children with medical needs. Staff awareness of medical policies and requirements for children is limited. On occasion, ratios are not adhered to, as staff are often asked to cover other rooms or clear up instead of engaging with the children. Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement Leaders' understanding of the curriculum is weak, and they do not have effective oversight across this nursery. Therefore, staff's understanding of teaching and learning is not effective to meet the needs of all children. For example, not all children have access to outdoor learning or age-appropriate outdoor equipment. Children who do go outside often do not have the skills they need to thrive. For example, they do not have the large-muscle control to power a large toy car. Communication and language are not prioritised across the nursery. Some children are taught some single words in English. Other children are not spoken to in English at all. Some of staff's own understanding of English is poor. When English is used with the children, it is often incorrectly pronounced. This hinders children's ability to communicate. Mathematics is not sequenced across the nursery. Children are not exposed to numbers, counting and mathematical songs. Their early mathematical knowledge does not build over time. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities do not receive effective support. For example, often children are given resources that are not specific to their needs, and children learn by chance rather than by design. Leaders and staff do not identify children's starting points or build on what they know. As a result, learning is not sequenced or embedded. Children's understanding of their own personal, social and emotional needs is weak. Children rarely communicate with each other. Some become frustrated and cry when their needs are not met. Staff respond only to stop the crying, rather than supporting children to understand and manage their emotions. Inclusion Urgent improvement Leaders have not created an inclusive culture that meets all children's individual needs. This includes the needs of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff do not understand how to assess what children can do, review their progress, plan meaningful next steps or address the barriers that limit their learning. Leaders have failed to ensure that all staff know how to support all children in the nursery. Although leaders have applied for additional funding, they do not use it purposefully or accurately. They cannot identify how or why they applied for this funding, and staff cannot explain how the funding benefits children or reduces barriers to learning. Children with additional needs and/or disabilities often wander around without purposeful engagement from staff, which restricts their learning, development and affects their behaviour. Leaders do not collaborate with relevant professionals to develop effective strategies or interventions that would help create a fully inclusive provision. This lack of partnership working further limits the support available to children and prevents staff from gaining the expertise they need. Overall, leaders' ineffective actions hinder children's progress and weaken the nursery's ability to meet the diverse needs of all learners. Leadership and governance Urgent improvement Leaders show poor knowledge and understanding of the statutory requirements. They do not run the setting well enough to ensure all children achieve, belong and thrive. Lines of accountability and oversight are unclear. For example, leaders have not made the outdoor area safe and accessible for all children. Leaders do not recognise all children's right to access an age-appropriate outdoor space to develop their skills and have fresh air daily. Leaders do not ensure staff receive the training they need, such as about safeguarding. They do not carry out proper vetting or ongoing suitability checks. Some staff do not understand how to report concerns. Leaders do not identify when staff fail to follow policies and procedures or when children do not receive the support they need, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. These weaknesses harm children's learning and development and have led to several breaches in requirements. Leaders have not engaged meaningfully with the local authority or other professionals, despite receiving visits and advice. Staff supervision is ineffective. Leaders do not spot weaknesses or improve staff's practice because of poor monitoring systems and lack of quality training for staff. This allows weaknesses to persist unnoticed. They do not promote children's right to learn English. Leaders have not provided meaningful coaching or guidance to help staff improve. Staff do not receive the resources or training needed to do their jobs well. For example, staff in the rooms for babies do not have suitable resources to support babies' physical development. Compulsory Childcare Register requirements This setting has not met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. How we check if a provider meets the requirements of the Compulsory Childcare Register When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes: Met Not met Voluntary Childcare Register requirements This setting has not met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register. How we check if a provider meets the requirements of the Voluntary Childcare Register When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes: Met Not met What it's like to be a child at this setting Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, do not have access to daily outdoor learning or fresh air. This is because the provider has not ensured that the garden is safe or suitable for children of all ages. A large climbing frame and slide in the centre of the nursery garden is not appropriate for all children to use safely. Staff do not always maintain required ratios during outdoor play. Children do not access a well-designed curriculum, and they do not receive learning that is built on what they already know, what they can do or what they need to learn next. Typically, children learn by chance and not by design. Staff do not teach children English consistently across the nursery. In some rooms, staff introduce single English words during fruit time, but they do not encourage children to repeat or practise this language. As a result, children's English language development is not at an age-appropriate level, and many children have some gaps in their learning. Staff do not support children's play with important language, and children do not interact with all staff members. At times, some children appear distressed and confused. Some older children do not play together with their peers. Children who do not receive any English language teaching are kept separate from those who are taught isolated English words. At mealtimes, children wait for long periods before receiving their food and become disengaged, which negatively affects their behaviour. Parents choose the times for their children to arrive and sometimes do not inform the nursery when their child may be absent. Leaders do not promote good attendance or punctuality, so children do not access their full entitlement to nursery provision or learning of the curriculum. Leaders do not follow up long periods of absence, leaving them unaware of the reasons behind children's non-attendance. As a result, leaders do not always know the whereabouts of the children, which poses a safeguarding concern. Some children form close attachments to staff in their rooms. At times, staff provide reassurance and guidance. Children also engage in some organised activities and appear to enjoy these experiences, although learning is limited during this time. Next steps The provider is not meeting the requirements of the Early years foundation stage and Childcare Register and Ofsted intends to take enforcement action. We will issue a Welfare Requirements Notice requiring the provider to have taken the following actions by the assigned date: Action Completion Date ensure safeguarding policies and procedures are in line with local safeguarding partnership guidance and implemented effectively 01/06/2026 Action Completion Date ensure effective absence monitoring systems are in place and shared with parents to monitor children's attendance and follow up unexplained or persistent absences 01/06/2026 obtain a new enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check for all staff and ensure that there are effective systems in place to monitor ongoing suitability 01/06/2026 ensure any person working on the premises, including external staff, are known to the provision and appropriately vetted 01/06/2026 record accurate information about completed staff identity checks and vetting processes and details of who at the setting obtained the relevant information 01/06/2026 ensure staff get the appropriate training and professional development they need to offer quality learning and development experiences for children that continually improves 01/06/2026 put appropriate arrangements in place for staff supervision that encourages the confidential discussion of sensitive issues and fosters a culture of mutual support, teamwork and continuous improvement 01/06/2026 ensure that staff have sufficient understanding and use of English to ensure the wellbeing of children in their care, including maintaining records in English 01/06/2026 ensure key persons have the information required to meet children's individual needs and identify any additional needs as they arise 01/06/2026 ensure all staff responsible for meeting children's health needs have up-to-date information on children's individual health requirements and are competent to administer medication if required 01/06/2026 ensure allergy action plans for managing children's known allergies and intolerances are kept up to date and shared with staff responsible for meeting their needs 01/06/2026 implement a consistent behaviour management policy that is understood by all staff to enable appropriate 01/06/2026 Inspectors: Gareth Cotterell Trina Lynskey About this setting Unique reference number (URN): 2780822 Address: Clock House 149 Stamford Hill London N16 5LG Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Action Completion Date management of children's behaviour in a way that supports their emotional development and wellbeing ensure all children, including babies, receive daily opportunities for outdoor play 01/06/2026 To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage and Childcare Register the provider must take the following action by the assigned date: Action Completion Date ensure mealtimes are well organised and well supervised, particularly for the youngest children 01/06/2026 About this inspection The inspectors spoke with leaders, staff, children and parents and carers 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. Registration date: 02/04/2024 Registered person: Clockhouse Childcare Ltd Register(s): EYR, CCR, VCR Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday,Sunday : 09:00 - 15:00 Local authority: Hackney Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 30 April 2026 Children numbers Age range of children at the time of inspection 1 to 3 Total number of places 102 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. 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