YMCA Eastleigh Nursery

YMCA Eastleigh Nursery
Unique reference number (URN): 2641047
Address: 29 Whieldon Way, Eastleigh, SO50 9SB
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 10/06/2021
Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR
Registered person: YMCA Fairthorne Group
Inspection report: 18 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.

Expected standard
Achievement Expected standard
Children, including those who face barriers to learning, typically make good progress in their
learning and development. They develop the skills they need to be ready for their next stage
of learning, such as going to school. All children demonstrate confidence and high levels of
self-esteem as they independently explore the environment. Children eagerly take on new
challenges, such as obstacle courses. They demonstrate a 'can-do' attitude and beam with
delight when they succeed.
Overall, children develop the language skills they need to be able to share their thoughts,
needs and ideas. They are able to communicate in a range of ways, including non-verbal
methods of communication. Children eagerly sing songs with staff and have clear favourites,
such as 'Five Currant Buns'. Children typically develop their independence skills through
everyday routines, such as pouring their own drink and self-serving their meals.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Children, including those who face barriers to learning, build warm and trusting relationships
with staff. They demonstrate they feel settled within the provision and have secure
attachments to staff and peers. There are high expectations for their behaviour, which are
generally applied consistently across the provision. When there are weaknesses in practice
relating to staff approaches to children's behaviour, such as inconsistent approaches to
children playing with cutlery at mealtimes, leaders take appropriate action to address these
and improve practice.
All children develop positive attitudes to learning and demonstrate their resilience and
confidence as they play. Children play collaboratively together and learn to take turns. For
example, they take turns as they roll balls towards each other. Staff frequently praise
children for their positive behaviour, which helps develop their self-confidence and self-
esteem. Staff act as positive role models for children. For example, they role model using
'please' and 'thank you' as they role play having cups of 'tea' with children.
Leaders closely track attendance and follow up on absences quickly to ensure children's
wellbeing. They work closely with families to promote the importance of attendance and
punctuality.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard
Children demonstrate they feel safe and secure with the kind and caring staff as they
happily come into the provision and settle quickly. Children's key persons know them well
and are able to meet their care needs effectively. Children also demonstrate they enjoy
playing and building relationships with their peers. Children learn to take risks safely. For
example, staff support children as they learn to climb trees safely. Children take pride in their
achievements as they eagerly climb.

Staff teach children healthy habits. For example, they regularly discuss with children about
the types of food that are healthy and encourage children to try new things during
mealtimes. Staff praise children for trying new foods, which helps to broaden their tastes
and to promote learning about healthy choices. Children build on their independence skills
as they progress through the provision. For example, they develop their skills at drinking
from closed beakers to an open-top cup.
Staff ensure children's care and hygiene needs are met, and staff do so respectfully. For
example, staff approach children from the front and ask before wiping their noses. Staff use
care routines as a time to develop bonds with children. For example, staff sing and talk with
young children as they change their nappies.
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Overall, staff understand and implement an ambitious curriculum that is designed to meet
the needs of children, including those who face barriers to learning. Typically, staff adapt
their provision and their teaching to ensure all children can access the curriculum. Children's
key persons know them well and tailor teaching to their individual needs and starting points.
However, when key people are unavailable, other staff are not as consistent with their
knowledge of the children. This then impacts staff's ability to recognise individual needs and
match teaching and activities to further extend and challenge children's learning.
There is a key focus on developing children's communication and language skills throughout
the provision. Typically, staff ensure they develop children's language skills through frequent
repetition and modelling of vocabulary. Staff weave mathematics into their everyday play.
For example, staff teach young children to count out one and two objects as they play
together.
Typically, staff teach the curriculum well and understand what children know and can do and
what they are working on. At times, there are inconsistencies in the quality of teaching. For
example, staff do not always consistently engage children as they play, which, at times,
leads to them becoming disengaged from their learning.
Inclusion Expected standard
Leaders and staff, on the whole, have high expectations for children, including those who
face barriers to learning. They regularly use assessment effectively to identify any emerging
needs in children's development. Leaders and staff typically implement appropriate
strategies to support children's learning and bridge the gap between children and their
peers. For example, leaders implement intervention groups across the provision to provide
tailored support. Typically, these intervention groups focus on supporting the development of
children's language and their listening and attention skills. Children who speak English as an
additional language are supported well. For example, staff ensure they have key words in
children's home languages to support their communication.
Leaders ensure funding is used appropriately to support the needs of children. For example,
leaders use funding to provide one-to-one support for children's learning. Leaders and staff
work closely with professionals, such as physiotherapists, to support children's

development. This helps to ensure a joined-up approach to children's learning and
development.
Leadership and governance Expected standard
Leaders demonstrate a clear and ambitious vision for the provision. They ensure staff
receive regular opportunities for training and development to enhance their teaching further.
Leaders have a secure understanding of the strengths and areas of development for the
provision. They accurately reflect on the provision and teaching, and leaders have a plan for
addressing the areas of development to ensure that teaching is of a consistently high quality
and meets the children's needs. For example, they hold regular supervision meetings with
staff to talk about their professional development and their teaching. In addition, leaders act
as role models for staff as they model high-quality interactions and teaching. However,
precise and rigorous monitoring of practice, followed by appropriate coaching, is not yet
consistent and fully embedded within the provision.
Leaders have developed well-thought-out transition plans for children moving to their next
stage of learning. This helps children transition seamlessly with any necessary adaptations
and support still in place. Leaders and staff have been developing parent partnerships within
the provision. For example, they hold regular community events. However, this is not yet
fully embedded as, for example, not all parents are aware of children's next steps in learning
and development.
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 settle quickly into the provision and confidently select activities and resources to
play with. Children excitedly play out in the garden as they climb and jump and develop their
physical skills. Children are inquisitive about the world around them and show positive
attitudes to learning. For example, children explore blocks of frozen ice and puzzle out how
to free the frozen toy animals. Staff skilfully build on children's knowledge as they teach
children about the concept of melting as the ice turns to water.
Staff introduce children to the 'story of the fortnight'. They then use this to promote children's
learning and development in a range of ways. For example, children begin to develop their
fine motor skills as they cut grass for goats from 'The Three Billy Goats Gruff'.
Children learn to take turns and share resources as they play with their peers. For example,
children use sand timers to help visually represent the wait as they take turns using the
trikes in the garden. Children confidently use the trikes as they steer and balance through
the garden.
Children learn to persevere with their learning and development when they find things
challenging. For example, children initially struggle as they learn how to twist the tops of
bottles as part of an activity based on 'The Hungry Caterpillar'. Staff encourage children to
keep trying and children beam with delight when they succeed. This helps promote
children's personal, social and emotional development as well as their hand–eye
coordination as they unscrew and screw the lids back on.

Inspectors:
Natasha Jarvis
Tara Naylor
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 2641047
Address:
29 Whieldon Way
Eastleigh
SO50 9SB
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 10/06/2021
Registered person: YMCA Fairthorne Group
Register(s): EYR, CCR, VCR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00
Next steps
Leaders should ensure that staff's practice is monitored and supported more precisely to
help develop consistent and fully embedded highly effective teaching and interactions to
support children's needs.
Leaders should support staff to know children's individual learning needs to ensure
teaching, activities and resources match these needs more effectively to support their
ongoing achievement.
Leaders should strengthen parent partnerships further to enhance children's learning at
home.
About this inspection
The inspectors spoke with leaders, staff, parents and children.
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: Hampshire
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 18 August 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
0 to 4
Total number of places
96
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.
This publication is available at https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk.
Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information
and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn.
Piccadilly Gate
Store Street
Manchester
M1 2WD
T: 0300 123 1231
Textphone: 0161 618 8524
E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk
W: www.gov.uk/ofsted
© Crown copyright 2026
© Crown copyright