Willow Day Nursery

Willow Day Nursery
Unique reference number (URN): 2819738
Address: 2A High Street, Dodworth, South Yorkshire, S75 3RF
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 09/01/2025
Registers: EYR
Registered person: Willow Day Nursery Ltd
Inspection report: 22 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
All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who
face barriers to their learning, make sustained progress from their starting points, in all areas
of learning. Children develop the knowledge and skills they require for their next stage of
learning. Teachers from local schools visit the setting, and children's progress is shared with
them as well as with parents and carers. All children are very well prepared for their next
stage of learning.
Children revisit learning, such as the focus book that they see and hear each day. Children
with educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face barriers to their learning,
recall sections of the story and anticipate the next words in the book. This repetition ensures
that learning is embedded, and strengthens children's communication and language skills.
Babies join in with singing time, copying actions confidently, while listening to familiar songs
and rhymes, developing children's love for singing and early language skills. Older children
develop independence during hand washing and toileting routines. Children's achievements
are celebrated and shared by everyone, developing children's self-esteem and ensuring
they become confident learners. Children receive explicit praise from staff at every
opportunity.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard
Leaders and staff have high expectations of children's behaviour and this is consistently well
promoted. This ensures that all children, including those children with special educational
needs and/or disabilities, and those who face barriers to their learning know what is
expected of them. Mealtimes at the setting are a social event, where all children eat
together. This enables older children to show younger ones how they use their cutlery and
manners, being excellent role models.
Leaders and staff build secure bonds with children, which ensure children feel safe and
secure in their environment. Staff are skilled at adapting routines to meet the needs of all
children. For example, when it is time to transition indoors from outdoor play, staff shift the
focus and explain that they are going to read a story. This excites children and they line up
straight away when asked. Routines within the setting are embedded and children know
what comes next. When asked what they need to do before teatime, children state they
need to tidy up and wash their hands. Leaders and staff work closely with parents and
carers to follow routines from home.
Children are highly focused and enjoy learning, spending long periods of time in each area,
engaged in activities. Leaders promote children's attendance and this is robustly monitor
with any absence being followed up immediately.

Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard
Leaders and staff ensure that children have a deep sense of belonging. Children have
secure attachments with the staff and leaders. Staff treat children with the upmost respect,
which leads to children treating each other with the same respect and warmth. Younger
children gently cuddle each other as a sign of affection, and the layout of the setting enables
siblings to see each other to say hello during the day. Leaders and staff encourage children
to talk about their feelings. Staff are very proactive at managing children's emotions and
recognise when children need support. Children can access a quiet reading area with staff,
if they need time to regulate their feelings, promoting emotional security. Leaders and staff
work in partnership with families to adapt to the changing needs of children. Routines within
the setting are adapted to ensure there is consistency between home and nursery. Families
speak very highly of leaders and staff, and the care and support that they offer.
Children enjoy nutritious food, and staff use mealtimes as a learning opportunity, talking
about how healthy food makes us strong, for instance. They talk about the need to drink lots
of water and children are aware that during warmer weather they need to drink more. There
are clear procedures in place to support children with specific dietary requirements.
Mealtimes are a social event, and younger children are encouraged to independently feed
themselves, receiving clear praise from staff to encourage them.
Curriculum and teaching Strong standard
Leaders and staff have very high expectations of all children. Teaching is of consistently high
quality and purposeful. Staff use every occasion as a learning opportunity and skilfully
question children to extend their thinking and develop their knowledge. For instance, when
children are looking at a jigsaw puzzle, staff discuss the animal on the jigsaw and whether it
is a leopard, a cheetah or a jaguar. They then talk about the differences between these,
giving children the opportunity to share their knowledge of the different animals.
The curriculum is thoroughly embedded within the setting and staff have a deep
understanding of children's development needs and their next steps in learning. For
example, staff working with babies understand the skills that children require to be able to
feed themselves. They offer babies opportunities to fill and empty in the sand, squeeze
water from sponges and use stacking cups, to develop coordination and control, skills that
they require to enable self-feeding. Children with special educational needs and/or
disabilities and those who face barriers to their learning are supported with the use of
individual support plans, ensuring teaching is specifically targeted to meet their individual
needs.
Staff use every opportunity to teach mathematics. Children use mathematical phrases
confidently, for instance, when looking at 2 teddy bears, children state that they are the
same size. Children sit together to read a book, looking closely at the pages and asking
questions about the story. Staff use these opportunities to discuss similarities and
differences. Children ask 'what is on their ear?', when they see a character in the book
wearing a hearing aid. Staff explain what it is, giving an appropriate explanation as to why
some people have hearing aids, explaining that everyone is different.

Inclusion Strong standard
Leaders and staff identify children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and
those who face barriers to their learning, quickly, due to robust monitoring systems. Leaders
and staff work in partnership with parents and carers when children start at the setting,
gaining knowledge of children's starting points. Through close and precise monitoring of
children's progress and the use of individual support plans, staff adapt their curriculum to
meet individual children's needs. They break learning down into smaller steps. For example,
staff use single words to begin with, then add a second word to this, then a third, such as
ball, red ball, big red ball. Leaders are confident in referring to external agencies for support
and work closely with them to ensure that all children make rapid progress. Leaders are
reflective on practice and provide support to the staff, this ensures that children are
continuously receiving the best possible learning opportunities.
Staff have a robust knowledge of the children attending and their families and are committed
to ensuring that all children make the best possible progress. Staff confidently understand
children's development and are aware that children who are known or previously known to
social care may have had different experiences and need more support. Leaders and staff
are skilled at having sensitive conversations with parents. Leaders accurately monitor the
use of any additional funding, using children's interests and staff training needs as a key
indicator, to ensure that children are fully supported by a knowledgeable team.
Leadership and governance Strong standard
Leaders are very passionate about their role and have a clear vision for the setting. They
accurately identify their strengths and areas for development. Staff benefit from regular
effective supervisions, and leaders ensures actions set are followed up. Leaders ensure that
staff's workload is manageable and regularly check in on their wellbeing. Leaders supports
staff's development and source training that is appropriate for their level of knowledge,
ensuring staff remain highly skilled. Staff share that leaders are approachable and
supportive. Leaders regularly reflect on practice to continuously drive improvement. A recent
change within the curriculum for the youngest children is already embedded in practice,
even after a short period of time, due to the dedication of leaders and staff. Leaders review
children's progress on a regular basis to ensure that all children are making rapid progress.
Leaders are very clear about their role within the setting. Leaders take a hands-on approach
within the setting, setting an example for staff and modelling best practice. Partnerships with
families are positive and supportive. Leaders offer regular opportunities for families to
discuss children's development and offer support when needed. Leaders build relationships
with families that enable very effective communication. Leaders treat every family and child
as individuals.

What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children arrive at the setting eager to greet the staff and their peers. They are welcomed
into a nurturing environment by an experienced team. Children settle into their day and
quickly become engrossed in their learning. Leaders and staff have high expectations of all
children within the setting. There is a robust monitoring system in place for children's
learning and development. This ensures that all children, including children with special
educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face barriers to their learning, make
rapid progress. Leaders closely monitor children's attendance, and promote the importance
of this to parents and carers.
The youngest children confidently explore their environment and staff support them in
developing all of their senses by offering a wide range of learning opportunities. Babies
explore the water, filling and emptying, then have opportunity to repeat these skills when
putting objects in and out of containers. Staff expertly question children to develop their
thinking and communication and language skills, deepening their understanding. Staff use
children's interests to engage them in mark making and encourage them to talk about what
they are drawing. Children are excited to share their learning with adults, and this is
celebrated by all.
Children are very well prepared for their next stage of learning. Staff support children
through the seamless transition process, both within the setting and when transitioning to
school, ensuring children remain confident in their new environment. Children have access
to an outdoor play space, that they confidently explore. For instance, there are opportunities
for children to develop physical skills, practising balancing on logs as they step or jump
between them. Children are keen to help each other. For example, when outdoors, they
discover that a book has fallen behind the playhouse, and work as a team to retrieve it.
Leaders and staff have developed secure relationships with parents and carers, who speak
very highly of the setting. They are fully informed of children's progress and next steps,
through termly parent meetings and daily conversations with staff.
Next steps
Leaders should sustain their robust self-evaluation processes to ensure continual
improvement and high standards and focus on creating a transformational impact on
outcomes for all children.
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with leaders, staff, special educational needs coordinators, designated
safeguarding leads, children, parents and carers during the inspection.

Inspector:
Lisa Watson
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 2819738
Address:
2A High Street
Dodworth
South Yorkshire
S75 3RF
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 09/01/2025
Registered person: Willow Day Nursery Ltd
Register(s): EYR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00
Local authority: Barnsley
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 22 July 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
0 to 4
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.

Total number of places
60
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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