Happy Days Day Nursery Abbey Meads Swindon

Happy Days Day Nursery Abbey Meads Swindon
Unique reference number (URN): EY560931
Address: Abbey Meads Village Centre, Elstree Way, Swindon, Wiltshire, SN25 4YX
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 22/05/2018
Registers: EYR, CCR
Registered person: Happy Days Day Nurseries Limited
Inspection report: 10 February 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 make stage-appropriate progress across all areas of learning and develop the skills
they need for future learning, including school. Babies build physical confidence as they
climb stairs, explore slides and engage in sensory and outdoor activities.
Children of all ages are socially confident, communicate effectively and sustain
concentration. Older children demonstrate curiosity and reasoning, asking thoughtful
questions during play, while engaging in imaginative activities such as role-playing and
negotiating in creative games such as making and selling pretend ice cream. Babies and
toddlers develop independence and personal care skills, feeding themselves at mealtimes
and drinking from open cups.
Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English
as an additional language make progress from their starting points. Children achieve well,
display confidence and are prepared to thrive in their next stage of learning.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Leaders have established a positive and welcoming environment where expectations for
behaviour are clearly understood and consistently modelled by staff. Children respond well
to these expectations, showing kindness, respect and consideration for their peers.
Practitioners build trusting relationships with children, providing reassurance,
encouragement and guidance that supports children's emotional security and confidence.
Babies demonstrate sustained focus during activities, such as watching bubbles float and
trying to catch them, while older children engage enthusiastically in group and imaginative
play, learning to share, negotiate and collaborate effectively with others.
Leaders recognise the importance of attendance and punctuality in supporting children's
progress and work closely with families to promote regular attendance, helping children
benefit fully from the learning opportunities available. Staff carefully consider children's age,
stage of development and individual needs and circumstances when supporting them to
maintain the setting's expectations. Staff offer guidance, praise and gentle reminders
tailored to each child, helping them understand how their behaviour affects others and to
develop positive social skills.
Leaders should further enhance expectations for what children can achieve, including
encouraging them to tidy resources to maintain inviting learning areas. Embedding daily
routines consistently will further strengthen children's independence, focus and positive
attitudes to learning.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard
Leaders establish clear procedures that support children's welfare, wellbeing and mental
health. These procedures are understood by staff and implemented across the setting. Staff

create a welcoming, safe and nurturing environment where children settle quickly, enter the
nursery happily and engage positively with staff and their peers. Babies and toddlers show
joy and confidence in exploring their surroundings, supported by attentive and responsive
practitioners.
Hygiene and personal care routines are well embedded, and children develop increasing
independence. For example, toddlers confidently collect tissues to wipe their noses. Leaders
ensure that children enjoy a healthy, balanced and nutritious diet, while daily opportunities
for exercise and active play support physical development and build lifelong healthy habits.
Care, including sleep routines, is tailored to meet the individual needs of children, helping
them feel safe and secure. Children of all ages are guided to explore and understand their
emotions.
Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who are
disadvantaged benefit from trusting relationships with staff, which foster a sense of
belonging and emotional security. Children's wellbeing is promoted effectively. They develop
resilience and confidence, and they are able to thrive socially, emotionally and physically in
a safe and inclusive environment.
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Leaders have an accurate understanding of the quality of the curriculum and teaching in
their setting and have a clear action plan to bring about further improvement. They have
developed an ambitious curriculum that is generally well taught, and its intent is consistently
shared with staff. Practitioners know what they want children to learn and be able to do, and
they use ongoing assessment to track progress and inform next steps in learning.
The curriculum is carefully sequenced to enable children to recall prior learning and embed
new knowledge through purposeful practice. This ensures that children develop the
knowledge and skills they need for future learning, including readiness for school. Children
with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are disadvantaged receive
tailored support and adaptations to ensure full access to the curriculum. For children who
speak English as an additional language, targeted interactions, resources such as a lending
library and a wide variety of bilingual books support language development and inclusion.
Staff plan teaching with a focus on mathematics, literacy and physical development for all
ages. Babies practise hand–eye coordination with stacking toys, and toddlers climb and
balance on an obstacle course. Pre-school children engage in structured group games to
develop social skills. Personal, social and emotional development is embedded across all
rooms, helping children feel safe, secure, happy and confident to explore and learn.
Inclusion Expected standard
Leaders identify and assess most children's individual needs at the earliest opportunity. Staff
gather detailed information from parents before children start and complete accurate
baseline assessments. They observe children closely to identify emerging needs promptly,
including for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, disadvantaged
children and those known (or previously known) to children's social care. Children who

speak English as an additional language receive impactful support and make significant
progress.
Leaders take strategic action to reduce barriers to learning and wellbeing. They implement
the graduated approach, and staff make reasonable adjustments, adapt activities and use
inclusive practices to ensure that children can participate fully. Leaders monitor children's
progress regularly and review the impact of support, adapting provision as needed. They
use early years pupil premium funding purposefully to provide targeted interventions and
enriched experiences for disadvantaged children. Leaders generally work closely with
families and external professionals to shape tailored support.
To further strengthen practice, leaders should ensure that support strategies consistently
make a clear and demonstrable difference to all children's outcomes. They need to embed
greater consistency in how staff identify, monitor and address barriers to learning so
interventions are sharply focused and their impact clearly measured, enabling all children to
make the strongest possible progress.
Leadership and governance Expected standard
Leaders have a clear understanding of the setting's context and its strengths and areas for
development. Decisions taken are in the best interests of all children. Recent changes in
management have created a period of transition for staff. However, leaders have
implemented effective strategies to support them through this change. Staff wellbeing is
prioritised, and practitioners report enjoying their roles and feeling confident in their
responsibilities.
Leaders provide regular and relevant training, mentoring and support to ensure that staff are
equipped to deliver high-quality care and learning. They monitor workloads carefully and
take swift action to maintain manageable responsibilities. When staff absences occur,
leaders bring in practitioners from other settings within the nursery group to maintain
consistency in children's care. Staff feel supported, understand their roles clearly and benefit
from opportunities to share good practice across the wider setting.
Leaders maintain relationships with parents and external agencies to support children's
learning, development and wellbeing. While engagement with parents is established,
communication could be further enhanced to strengthen partnerships and ensure that
families are fully included and involved in their child's progress. Leaders have an appropriate
development plan in place and continue to focus on embedding improvements to support
staff, children and families effectively.

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
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children thrive in this welcoming and nurturing setting, where they feel safe, valued and
eager to learn. From the moment they arrive, staff greet them warmly and establish secure
routines that help children settle quickly. Leaders promote attendance by working closely
with families, emphasising the importance of regular participation and following up promptly
on absences. As a result, children attend consistently and benefit fully from the rich learning
experiences on offer.
Staff recognise children's different starting points, including those with special educational
needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They carry out accurate assessments and use this
information to plan purposeful experiences that build on what children already know and can
do. Staff swiftly identify any gaps in learning and work in partnership with parents and other
professionals to reduce barriers. Consequently, children, including those with SEND, make
progress from their individual starting points.
Children show high levels of enjoyment and engagement in their learning. Babies laugh and
smile as they explore sensory experiences, transferring sand between containers. Toddlers
persevere as they climb, balance and investigate the outdoor environment, developing
resilience and physical confidence. Older children demonstrate curiosity as they plant
seeds, care for living things and talk knowledgeably about how food grows. They use tools
safely, share ideas and cooperate well with their friends. Children are socially confident and
communicate well.

Inspectors:
Victoria Jones
Jonathan Payne
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): EY560931
Address:
Abbey Meads Village Centre
Elstree Way
Swindon
Staff consistently encourage children to make choices, express their views and take
increasing responsibility. Children develop confidence and independence as they select
resources, manage self-care routines and solve problems. They build positive relationships,
learn to respect one another and show kindness in their play. Strategic support, clear
expectations and meaningful interactions enable children to flourish in a safe, inclusive
environment where they feel a sense of belonging and are well prepared for their next stage
in learning.
Next steps
Leaders should ensure that staff are consistent in making sure barriers that children face
are effectively addressed.
Leaders should further develop routines to support children to have a consistently positive
attitude towards their learning.
Leaders should enhance communication and relationships with parents further to support
children's education and care even more.
About this inspection
The inspectors spoke with leaders, practitioners, the special educational needs coordinator,
children 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.

Wiltshire
SN25 4YX
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 22/05/2018
Registered person: Happy Days Day Nurseries Limited
Register(s): EYR, CCR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:00 - 18:00
Local authority: Swindon
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 10 February 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
0 to 4
Total number of places
100
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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