URN EY271409 · Inspected 2026-07-23 · Published 2026-09-08 · Inspector: Alanda Phillips
Tops Day Nurseries - Musgrove Unique reference number (URN): EY271409 Address: Taunton and Somerset Hospital, Musgrove Park, Taunton, Somerset, TA1 5BZ Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 03/12/2003 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: Tops Day Nursery Limited Inspection report: 23 July 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 Children make rapid progress across the curriculum. Babies learn to communicate their needs early as they use basic Makaton signs, such as for 'please' and 'more'. Older children become confident communicators as they readily share their thoughts. For instance, they compare their toy cars as they race them. Babies develop their sense of autonomy as they routinely make decisions for themselves, such as whether to have milk or water. Children become impressively independent in meeting their own needs. Their independence develops consistently as they move through the setting. For example, toddlers start to pour their own water and learn to serve lunch. Older children work together to lay the table and work out how many plates are needed. The children are very well prepared for their next stage of learning, including for school. Children who experience barriers to learning make excellent progress. Every child is fully supported to benefit from all possible opportunities. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard Leaders have established an extremely positive culture in the setting. All children and staff have complete clarity about the expectations for behaviour. Staff skilfully adapt their approach to meet each child's individual needs. Staff ensure that consistently effective routines support all children throughout the day. This means that they always know exactly what is expected of them. For instance, children work together to lay the table for lunch. Older babies know to stand by the door before they head in for snack. Children develop very positive relationships with staff, who know them well. For example, children hold up lemons to show staff, when they have managed to cut them. Staff praise children warmly for their perseverance, which helps them to develop consistently positive attitudes to learning. Children learn to collaborate very effectively. They take turns and happily share equipment, without direct adult support. Children are consistently kind and considerate towards each other. For instance, children say, 'I am just waiting for my turn,' as they wait patiently. They offer resources readily to others if they notice their friends need something, such as passing a pen to a peer. Leaders promote the importance of regular attendance and punctuality. They act decisively where potential barriers to attendance emerge. For example, they alter attendance patterns to match the changing shifts of parents and carers. Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard Leaders have ensured that all staff place children's care needs at the heart of everything that they do. Staff are entirely attentive in ensuring that children are always safe and happy. Where required, care practices for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are carefully adapted. This means that all children are fully included at all times. Staff have a comprehensive understanding of the children in their care. For example, they regularly check with parents and carers about children's sleep routines and weaning stages. Staff lead embedded practices, such as tooth brushing, effectively. This helps children to build and maintain healthy habits for life. Children learn to keep themselves safe and well. For instance, staff remind them to wash their hands after blowing their nose. Children understand that they need to do this to stop germs from making them unwell. Children are supported to recognise and manage their emotions. They learn to name what they are feeling. They relate their feelings to colour images so that all children can share their emotions. Children learn about the importance of taking time to calm themselves. They take part in yoga sessions and choose from a board of calming strategies. Mealtimes are social occasions, and children are attentively supervised throughout. Children learn to eat a healthy and balanced diet. They understand why this is important. For example, they say, 'Carrots help me grow big and strong.' Children sleep safely in comfortable rooms with continual staff supervision. Curriculum and teaching Strong standard Leaders have a very clear oversight of their curriculum and teaching. They continually strive to improve every child's experiences. Staff provide a broad and balanced curriculum that focuses on developing children's curiosity and love of learning. Leaders ensure that all children receive the exact adaptations they need in order to be fully included. Staff consistently make effective use of questioning to encourage children's thinking skills. For instance, they ask children to explain what might happen when they try things in a different way. This builds children's depth of thinking and encourages them to share their ideas with confidence. Babies develop their physical skills rapidly. For example, staff support them to tentatively start walking and to pull themselves up on furniture. Older children learn to control their bodies with skill during yoga sessions and build their coordination as they draw on large sheets of paper, for instance. Mathematical learning is skilfully embedded. Babies develop an understanding of size and shape as they compare cups. Older children work with staff to discuss the concept of time and relate it to a clock. They enthusiastically point out the numerals that they know. Staff carefully assess what children know and can do. They tailor their interactions to ensure that they continually move children's learning forward. Inclusion Strong standard Children's needs are extremely well identified and supported. Leaders work very closely with parents and carers from their first visit, to work out exactly what support children need in order to thrive. Leaders meticulously identify and reduce possible barriers to learning. For instance, they provide matched experiences for children who need to leave the room for medical attention, so that they never miss out. Leaders develop skilful adaptations to ensure that all children can achieve well. These are consistently understood and used by staff. For example, they use individually tailored visual images to help children to communicate their needs. Children benefit from one-to-one specialist support sessions. These sessions are specifically tailored to support children in reaching their developmental targets and support children very effectively in making rapid progress. Leaders and staff regularly review children's progress together. They carefully adapt their approach to meet children's changing needs. Leaders use their high level of skill and experience to support staff in developing their practice. They also provide additional carefully matched training. This ensures that all staff have the knowledge they need to consistently meet all children's needs. Leaders have a very comprehensive knowledge of children who are known to children's social care. They consistently monitor their progress and their wider life experiences to ensure that all potential barriers are addressed swiftly. Leadership and governance Strong standard Leaders have a comprehensive understanding of the setting's context. They consistently strive for excellence and have developed a real culture of continual improvement. Leaders ensure that all staff have consistently high expectations, for what children can achieve and also for how they can support the children in their care. Leaders are passionate about working with their local community. For instance, they have developed long-standing arrangements with local colleges. They regularly visit the college to run stay-and-play sessions to support the students in their training. Staff consistently feel that leaders care about their wellbeing and workload. They value the open culture, where they can speak with a wide number of leaders to share their ideas and experiences. Staff benefit from regular tailored training to improve their practice. For instance, many staff have recently completed Makaton training. This is being used across the setting to support children's developing communication skills. Leaders ensure that all staff, including those who work at the setting on a less frequent basis, complete the same high-quality training. This enables all staff to deliver consistently high-quality teaching to promote children's learning. Parents are overwhelmingly positive about their children's experiences at the setting. They really value their close working relationships with staff and can go to them for support and guidance. Parents appreciate how flexible leaders are in adjusting provision to meet the exact needs of every individual child. 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 arrive at the nursery enthusiastically. They engage in a wide range of experiences that are offered to spark their curiosity and exploration. Children build close, effective relationships with staff who know them well. Children look to staff for praise and reassurance. For instance, babies crawl towards their key staff for comfort, and older children call out for staff to show them what they have achieved. Children share their thoughts and feelings readily and talk about their ideas. For example, they explain their intention to make lemonade. Children are encouraged to share their expert knowledge and to 'teach' staff. For instance, they tell them 'everything that they know' about robots. Babies develop their emerging communication skills using well-embedded Makaton signs. This helps them to communicate their needs at an early stage. Children, including those experiencing potential barriers to learning, become confident explorers in this setting. For instance, they are supported to use suitable knives to cut peppers and cucumbers to find the seeds inside. They persevere and enthusiastically share their discoveries with each other. Children develop a love of learning. They benefit from an immersive approach to their learning. For example, they explore sunflower seeds, pulling them from flower heads and using them in play dough, while listening to a story about growing sunflowers. This helps children to build a depth of understanding. Children visit local care homes regularly and participate in activities alongside residents. This further develops children's understanding of their local community and the world around them. Children's families are warmly welcomed here. Parents and carers value the support they receive from leaders and staff. For example, they work closely together to help children with Inspector: Alanda Phillips About this setting Unique reference number (URN): EY271409 Address: Taunton and Somerset Hospital Musgrove Park Taunton Somerset TA1 5BZ Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registration date: 03/12/2003 Registered person: Tops Day Nursery Limited Register(s): EYR, CCR, VCR Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 06:00 - 20:00 potty training. Children are keen to attend regularly, as their experiences are so positive and exciting. This means that they are extremely well prepared for their transition on to school. Next steps Leaders should ensure continued improvement in the setting's successful work to remove barriers for children who need extra help to realise a transformational impact on all children's achievement and wellbeing. About this inspection The inspector spoke with leaders, staff, children, 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. Local authority: Somerset Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 23 July 2026 Children numbers Age range of children at the time of inspection 0 to 11 Total number of places 121 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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