URN EY556191 · Inspected 2026-08-20 · Published 2026-09-21 · Inspector: David Watkins
The Avenue Day Nursery Unique reference number (URN): EY556191 Address: 2c The Avenue, Petersfield, GU31 4JQ Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 23/03/2018 Registers: EYR Registered person: The Avenue Nursery And Pre-School Limited Inspection report: 20 August 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 Expected standard Inclusion Strong standard Staff provide excellent support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and their families. Leaders collaborate extremely well with parents and specialist professionals. This helps staff to understand the individual needs of the children in their care. Leaders accompany parents on visits to new schools. This gives families the information they need to support a smooth and well-planned move on to school. Staff are highly knowledgeable about their key children, including those with SEND. This enables staff to set meaningful targets for children's ongoing development. In addition, leaders devise impactful plans that address specific areas of children's development. For example, staff adapt stories about characters who are able to explore their feelings. As a result, children with SEND and those who face barriers to learning, make rapid progress in their communication and emotional development. Staff consistently ignite children's curiosity. They successfully motivate all children to participate in activities throughout the day. Skilled staff run well-structured activities which incorporate children's interests. For example, engaging staff use a shared-attention activity to develop the language and social skills of children with SEND. During the activity, staff include pictures of space exploration. This teaching deepens children's engagement, encourages their use of English and helps them to feel included. Achievement Expected standard Children of all ages develop their fine-motor skills. Older babies flick through the pages of favourite books. Older toddlers show typically developing scissor skills. Pre-school children generally hold pens securely. They move small cars on tracks with precision and purpose. Children develop a love of books. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities show an increasing ability to talk about what they see and know. For example, they use topic-specific vocabulary, such as 'astronaut', 'rocket' and 'satellite'. They become increasingly confident in ordering cards containing verbs and nouns. Very young children practise speaking by attempting to say words. However, children do not consistently deepen their mathematical understanding because staff do not routinely use mathematical language across the setting. Children play together safely. They take turns to carefully show their balancing skills when using sports equipment. At each stage, children generally demonstrate greater coordination of their bodies. This supports their readiness for school. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard Staff are attentive to children's moods and respond sensitively. They remind children to use their quiet indoor voices. Staff use audio and visual cues, such as shaking a tambourine. This helps children focus and prepare for change. Staff create personalised books based on children's lives. This helps children to understand their feelings in the context of familiar experiences. Staff-led creative approaches like these also help to start conversations between children and their families. They support children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), during new routines. They also help children to attend regularly. Staff ensure that children follow 'golden rules', both inside and outside the setting, including on trips to the local community. Staff create behaviour plans that help children with SEND explore their emotions. They use calm and effective strategies to help children regulate their behaviour. For example, by giving children quiet spaces to unwind and refocus. This also helps children to maintain positive attitudes to their learning. However, on rare occasions, staff do not take time to examine the cause of disputes between children. This means that sometimes, behaviour is not fully resolved, which impacts on children's confidence. Leaders run behaviour-focused training sessions for parents. These sessions help parents to understand what children are communicating through their behaviour. Leaders also offer parents guidance on sensory support, redirection and neurodivergence to help them meet children's individual needs. Curriculum and teaching Expected standard Leaders devise a coherent curriculum that follows children's interests closely. In addition, leaders apply the curriculum to consistently build on what children know and can do. Staff carefully monitor the developing language and physical skills of babies and young children. This ensures that very young children are well prepared for their next stages of development. Staff across the setting teach children how to develop their independence. For example, staff support very young children to develop the skills needed to feed themselves. Staff sit patiently with children as they guide them to put on their shoes. Staff provide children with opportunities to practise these skills by themselves. This supports children to quickly develop the independence skills they need to progress. Staff model rich language while reading stories to children. This helps children develop a love of books while supporting their literacy development. Leaders adapt favourite books about emotions to include pictures of individual children. This puts children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) at the centre of stories. This helps children with SEND learn to manage their feelings in context. Staff generally extend children's thinking. For example, they ask where the fruit in their packed lunch comes from. However, staff's use of mathematical language is not yet consistently embedded across the setting. Leaders have organised training and appointed Needs attention nominated staff as 'maths champions', although it is too early to evaluate the impact of these developments. Leadership and governance Expected standard The registered provider maintains oversight of the setting through an appraisal process that holds leaders to account for improvement. Leaders observe staff's practice and provide feedback to develop staff's teaching skills. Leaders also support children alongside staff on a daily basis. This helps leaders to monitor the quality of teaching closely, while identifying any areas for development. Leaders talk confidently about current priorities for development. These include strengthening the teaching of mathematics through focused staff training. Leaders manage staff workload well. Staff feel valued and supported. Leaders nurture close partnerships with parents, specialist professionals and safeguarding agencies. This ensures impactful support for children who face barriers to their learning. Leaders also build links with the local community through outings that broaden children's experiences. This helps children to thrive, particularly in relation to their social and emotional wellbeing. Leaders continue to strengthen the robust support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Ongoing training on SEND has strengthened practitioners' inclusive practice for children with additional needs. For example, staff feel more confident to support a wider range of needs. Leaders ensure that early years pupil premium (EYPP) funding is used effectively. Staff have purchased resources that closely follow children's interests. For example, this includes bikes and indoor play equipment. This supports children's developing physical skills and enables children receiving EYPP to progress. Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention Staff do not consistently position themselves effectively at tables where older children are eating. As a result, they do not always recognise when children need further support. For example, older children with allergies sit next to children who struggle to keep food on their plate. This increases the risk of contact with allergens. Staff do not notice when food from lunchboxes is dropped onto the floor. In addition, children who do not yet sit securely sometimes fall from their chairs. This means that children are not consistently supervised at lunchtime, which compromises their welfare. Leaders have identified challenges with the physical space available in the lunch room. Leaders have introduced changes to maximise the use of space and the coordination of staff. These adjustments have improved the supervision of children on busier days. However, these changes are not applied during quieter periods. As a result, weaknesses remain in how lunch is organised for older children. Despite this, supervision of babies and young children when eating is secure. Staff follow safer-eating guidelines to reduce risks associated with choking. Outside of lunchtime, staff support older children's wellbeing appropriately through calm routines and clear expectations. Staff remind children to wash their hands before eating. They encourage children to drink plenty of water. They provide children with healthy, nutritious food. Leaders arrange for extra-curricular activities that involve music, dancing, sports and yoga. This ensures that children receive daily opportunities to exercise, which helps them to develop healthy habits. What it's like to be a child at this setting Children do not always receive effective supervision at lunchtime, which compromises their welfare. Leaders have identified challenges in the organisation of lunchtime for toddlers and pre-school children. However, changes to staff deployment intended to increase supervision, are not applied consistently. Consequently, older children with allergies are sometimes inadequately supervised, and the individual needs of toddlers and pre-school children are not fully supported while they eat. Children show increasing levels of confidence throughout the setting. They respond to new people with smiles. They readily share their interests with staff. For example, they bring books to adults and enjoy the stories that are read. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) manage transitions well between activities. This is due to the highly focused support from trusted adults. Children with SEND participate alongside their peers in structured activities led by knowledgeable, engaging staff. These activities build important skills in listening, waiting and turn taking. Children form positive relationships with their key persons. Babies and very young children explore a range of fascinating sensory resources. Young children play with flashing wands, coloured scarves and liquid timers. They love showing these to adults for cooperative play. Older children immerse themselves in construction and various arts and crafts. They twist, turn and manipulate a variety of tools with excitement and purpose. This supports their creativity and fine-motor skills. Children are well behaved on trips out to the local community. They listen and respond to adults immediately. This helps to keep everyone safe while children enjoy local places of interest with their friends. Inspector: David Watkins About this setting Unique reference number (URN): EY556191 Address: 2c The Avenue Petersfield GU31 4JQ Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registration date: 23/03/2018 Children, including those with SEND, consistently engage with activities that reflect their interests. Very young children lower themselves into ball pools with wide grins. Children proudly show the yoga moves they learn in extra-curricular sessions. Children attend regularly because staff create a welcoming, stimulating environment. Next steps To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage the provider must take the following action by the assigned date: Action Completion Date review lunchtime arrangements for toddlers and pre- school children to ensure that children are effectively supervised at all times 17/09/2026 About this inspection The inspector spoke with leaders, staff 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. Registered person: The Avenue Nursery And Pre-School Limited Register(s): EYR Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:00 - 19:00 Local authority: Hampshire Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 20 August 2026 Children numbers Age range of children at the time of inspection 1 to 5 Total number of places 55 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. You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence, write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk. 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