Making Friends Day Nursery

Making Friends Day Nursery
Unique reference number (URN): 2593087
Address: 68 Doncaster Road, Bawtry, Doncaster, DN10 6NU
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 15/06/2020
Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR
Registered person: Making Friends Partnership
Inspection report: 9 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
Children develop the knowledge and skills needed for their next stage of learning. They
show increasing confidence to join activities, share resources and follow familiar routines
independently. Children build communication skills through daily interactions, such as
describing experiences and responding to questions. They develop early mathematical
understanding by counting, matching and solving simple problems.
Children strengthen independence by managing personal care routines, making choices and
typically persist when tasks become challenging. They refine fine motor control through
activities that require careful handling of small resources such as, filling small containers
and using tweezers and pegs. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities
access learning experiences alongside their peers and make progress from their starting
points. Children's progress is regularly reviewed to ensure all children make positive
achievements across all areas of learning.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Children thrive in an environment that positively supports their learning, development and
care. Leaders establish clear routines that help children to feel secure and understand what
is expected of them. Staff teach children the necessary skills to focus their attention and
manage their behaviour with increasing control. For example, children wait for their turn to
recall what they have enjoyed during the morning by holding the toy monkey.
Staff make thoughtful adjustments for individual children including those with special
educational needs and/or disabilities or barriers to their learning. They seek advice from
external professionals to ensure that children's best interests are met. Leaders monitor
children's attendance closely and remind parents about the importance of regular
attendance.
Leaders set high expectations for children's behaviour across the setting. Children typically
play well together, such as sharing resources, taking turns to make and mix the dough. Staff
use positive praise effectively to reinforce the behaviours they want to see. When children
become overwhelmed staff understand why and how best to support their individual needs.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard
Children feel secure and settled in the setting. They form warm relationships with their key
persons and confidently seek reassurance or support when needed. Staff respond
sensitively to children's care needs, helping them to feel emotionally secure and ready to
learn. Children benefit from consistent routines that support their wellbeing throughout the
day. They manage personal care with increasing independence, including handwashing and
preparing for mealtimes. Children understand expectations around hygiene and follow
familiar processes confidently. Leaders and staff follow safer sleep practices at the nursery
to ensure children are kept safe.

Children enjoy talking about their emotions as a group, for example they say, 'I feel happy
today.' This supports children's emotional development and wellbeing. Children are learning
to understand how others are feeling. Children take time to listen to one another and share
conversations with the staff team. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities
or who face barriers to learning are well supported. Time is spent on each child's learning
and next steps. This helps support them and makes them feel included, enabling them to
fully access and enjoy learning at nursery.
The setting promotes healthy lifestyles. Children have access to regular outdoor play and
balanced meals, and they talk about healthy choices during daily routines. These
experiences help children develop awareness of their physical wellbeing. Overall, children
show growing emotional resilience. They begin to manage minor frustrations and transition
between activities with support.
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Leaders and staff generally share a collaborative approach to their teaching at the setting.
They work with children's families to collect up-to-date information about each child. Regular
assessment of children's progress helps to identify any gaps in children's learning and
development. This enables leaders and staff to implement targeted intervention activities to
support children's ongoing progress. Leaders want children to be confident, independent
and have the skills and knowledge they need to transition to their next stage of learning.
Children have good relationships with their key person, they understand what children know
and can do, and what they are learning next, including those that have recently started at
the setting. Children enjoy sharing storybooks with staff and peers. This helps to build on
children's communication and language skills. Staff foster a real love of books by focusing
on the content and characters and implementing this into other play activities. However, this
is not consistent as staff sometimes do not consider all opportunities to build on children's
language acquisition and understanding of the words they learn in context. Leaders and
staff implement the curriculum into children's interests and planned activities. For example,
as staff are reading 'Jack and the Beanstalk' children use rulers to measure the beanstalks,
building on their mathematical understanding. Children create their own beanstalk with
dough, developing their hand muscles and using their imagination.
Inclusion Expected standard
Children's individual ages, likes, needs and home lives are carefully considered by the staff.
Leaders make sure staff are alert to any issues affecting children in their lives, which
enables them to support the children and their families. Leaders ensure that staff typically
have the skills and knowledge to identify, support and encourage children's learning
especially those with special educational needs and/or disabilities or any barriers to their
learning. This means that all children make effective progress from their starting points. For
example, leaders and staff ensure children have plenty of time outside. Leaders are aware
not all children have access to a garden and understand the importance of being outside to
support children's wellbeing.
Staff know and understand children's emotional and physical needs well which enables
them to provide targeted interventions and adapt routines, they work closely with parents

and seek external support from professionals to ensure children have the best care and
support to meet their individual needs. Leaders use any additional funding effectively to
enhance children's experiences, build on what children already know and provide resources
to help reduce any gaps in children's learning and development.
Leadership and governance Expected standard
Leadership and management are effective in ensuring children receive a safe, inclusive and
well-organised experience. Overall, leaders understand their responsibilities and maintain a
reflective oversight of practice. They know the children and families well and use this
knowledge to shape provision that supports children's learning, welfare and personal
development. Leaders promote a positive culture where staff work together consistently and
share responsibility for children's progress.
Leaders support staff through ongoing communication and reflective discussion. This
strengthens staff confidence and helps them deliver the curriculum across the day. As a
result, children experience familiar routines and purposeful learning opportunities that build
on their early mathematics, independence and social development. Leaders encourage staff
to use day-to-day interactions to support children's learning and help them develop the
attitudes and skills they need for their next stage in learning. Leaders ensure staff implement
an effective curriculum for communication and language, staff across the setting introduce
new ideas and words to children through books and activities. However, this is not yet
consistent as not all staff use any opportunity to extend and strengthen children's
understanding of words.
Leaders prioritise partnership working with parents. Parents speak positively about the care
and education their children receive and value regular communication about their children's
progress and next steps. This supports continuity between home and the setting and helps
children to thrive. Leaders ensure that children with special educational needs and/or
disabilities (SEND) are identified promptly and supported appropriately through specialist
guidance and regular review. Consequently, children with SEND are included in daily
routines and learning experiences and are supported to achieve well.
Compulsory Childcare Register requirements
This setting has 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 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 experience a welcoming and caring environment. They are greeted by warm and
friendly staff that respond to their individual needs. Key-person arrangements help children
feel safe, valued and confident to explore. Staff provide calm, consistent support that builds
trust, and early independence. Children confidently approach familiar staff for reassurance
and guidance, particularly during transitions and daily routines.
Children enjoy their learning and play with curiosity. Activities reflect their interests and
promote progress across the areas of learning. For example, during building-site role play,
children use blocks to construct a home for the dinosaurs. They explore size, shape and
balance and use language to explain their ideas and involve others. One child proudly says,
'I'm building a house for T-Rex.' Staff encourage turn-taking, sharing and communication,
which strengthens relationships and supports positive learning behaviours.
Children are provided plenty of opportunities to develop their mathematical skills during play.
Babies enjoy counting the rings as they place them on the pole. Older children make a
rocket using connecting shapes and colours. Leaders and staff support children's physical
development. Younger children enjoy exploring the water, pouring and filling into small jars.
Older children are preparing for their transition to school, strengthening their fingers using
tweezers to search for coins in the sand while others learn to write their own names.
Children's personal, social and emotional development is supported well. Children benefit
from planned time during the day for mixed group sessions so that the older children can

Inspector:
Jo Clark
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 2593087
Address:
68 Doncaster Road
Bawtry
Doncaster
DN10 6NU
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 15/06/2020
Registered person: Making Friends Partnership
play alongside the younger children. This supports children's self-confidence and promotes
positive behaviours.
Children who require additional support have strategies in place so they can access learning
alongside their peers. Leaders work closely with families to promote regular attendance and
consistent routines, supporting continuity in children's care and learning.
Next steps
Leaders should strengthen the provision for communication and language to ensure staff
use every opportunity to clarify and build on children's language acquisition and
understanding of words.
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with leaders, staff, special educational needs coordinator, the
designated safeguarding lead and parents.
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.

Register(s): EYR, CCR, VCR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00
Local authority: Doncaster
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 9 June 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
1 to 4
Total number of places
50
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.
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