The Little Ripley Day Nursery

The Little Ripley Day Nursery
Unique reference number (URN): 2816796
Address: 192 Boldmere Road, Sutton Coldfield, B73 5UE
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 01/11/2024
Registers: EYR
Registered person: The Little Ripley Day Nurseries Limited
Inspection report: 9 September 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
Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard
Leaders and staff consistently prioritise children's welfare and wellbeing. They create a safe,
nurturing and well-organised environment, where all children feel secure, valued and
included. Leaders are highly responsive to children's needs and adapt their practice
accordingly. For example, they work in close partnership with parents and carers to
understand children's dietary requirements and allergies. Parents are invited into the setting
to share information, and staff collaborate with them to ensure children's dietary needs are
supported. A thorough settling-in process enables staff to understand babies' and children's
routines. This supports smooth transitions into the setting and meets individual needs from
the outset.
Safe-sleeping practices are embedded. Staff monitor babies' and children's sleep routines
closely and carry out regular safety checks. Rigorous audits of the environment and
equipment help maintain high standards. Staff create a calm, relaxed sleep environment.
For example, they use soothing music and darkened rooms to help babies and children
settle quickly.
Children, including those who face barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing, benefit from
outdoor learning experiences. They explore the bicycles with confidence and say 'beep,
beep' as they ride. Children develop their control and coordination as they kick balls to staff
and climb over the bridge. Staff encourage children to throw and catch balls, supporting their
physical development.
Staff teach children about the importance of brushing their teeth. For example, children take
part in practical activities using resources such as large models of teeth and toothbrushes.
They engage in discussions about oral hygiene and talk about healthy and unhealthy foods.
As a result, children learn about oral health and develop an early understanding of healthy
lifestyles.
Inclusion Strong standard
Leaders have created a truly embedded, inclusive and nurturing environment for all children.
They liaise with other professionals to ensure the right support is in place. Leaders and staff
consistently identify children's needs swiftly and implement targeted learning plans. These
plans are reviewed regularly to reflect children's changing needs. As a result, children
receive timely, well-matched support that enables them to thrive. Children in receipt of
additional funding benefit from targeted resources, such as outdoor equipment, toys and
enriching experiences that enhance their learning and development. Leaders monitor this
funding closely to ensure it is used effectively and aligns with each child's individual needs.
Leaders and staff have established strategies that consistently support children's learning
experiences. They have embedded advice from other professionals, including the use of
'love hearts' to support children with transitions into the nursery. For example, when children
feel upset, they know they can touch the love heart on their hand to remind them of their
parent or carer and to help them feel calm. This helps children to regulate their emotions. In

Expected standard
addition, staff use a communication and language screening tool, alongside signs, visual
prompts and adaptations to practice to ensure all children can join in and learn. These
approaches enable children to communicate effectively and manage their emotions with
increasing confidence.
Achievement Expected standard
Typically, all children make progress from their starting points across all areas of learning.
Babies learn to crawl and stand steadily. They learn to walk with support and
encouragement, and develop confidence as they fall and keep on trying. Babies explore and
learn to fill and empty containers using spades, for instance. They relish story time, join in
with actions and copy words and animal sounds. This develops their early communication
and language skills.
Children learn to retell stories, such as 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'. They use new
vocabulary, such as 'reflection', 'big' and 'tall', as they recount key events. Children learn
about keeping their teeth healthy and use this knowledge as they immerse themselves in
imaginative play. For example, they use large-scale model teeth and brushes to practise the
skills they have learned. Children develop early mathematical understanding as they learn to
count, name shapes and identify colours. All children are generally prepared appropriately
for their next stage of education.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Leaders and staff have typically set clear expectations for behaviour. Staff teach children
about kindness and respect and use gentle reminders when needed. They model positive
behaviours, such as taking turns and sharing. This helps children to understand what is
expected of them and how to behave with others. Leaders ensure that attendance is actively
promoted and work closely with families so they understand the importance of regular
attendance. Leaders monitor children's attendance carefully to support positive habits from
the earliest stages.
All children generally know their routines. Staff understand and follow the daily routines,
such as mealtimes, tidy-up time and carpet sessions. However, during transitions, such as
tidy-up time, children are not consistently helped to understand what will happen next. As a
result, younger children do not always benefit from well-established, predictable routines
that help them understand and prepare for the next part of their day.
Overall, leaders and staff promote a nurturing and inclusive culture where children, including
those who face barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing, are valued and supported. Staff
know all children well and have developed warm, caring relationships with them. Children
are encouraged to say 'please' and 'thank you' as they interact with one another. Staff use
praise, such as saying 'well done', to celebrate children's achievements. As a result, children
develop positive attitudes to their learning.

Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Typically, leaders have designed an ambitious and well-sequenced curriculum. Staff get to
know all children very well. For example, they spend time with children to find out about and
understand their interests and what they can or cannot yet do. Staff use this information
effectively to plan next steps for children's learning and development.
Staff weave mathematics through daily routines. For example, they name shapes, such as
circle and square, and use contextual language as children build models with magnetic
shapes. Children use nets to catch small, toy fish and count aloud with staff support. They
repeat the activity and use their fingers to show numbers as they count out their fish.
However, staff do not always use their interactions to further challenge and extend children's
learning. This means children sometimes continue activities without being encouraged to
think further to build on what they already know. Leaders recognise that these interactions
are yet to be fully embedded.
Children develop their emotional skills. Staff use stories to help children, including those
who speak English as an additional language, understand and talk about their feelings.
Children link colours to emotions. For example, children say that yellow represents happy
and use an 'angry voice' for red. Children share comments, such as 'I get sad when it rains'.
This helps children to recognise, label and express their emotions confidently.
Leadership and governance Expected standard
Leaders are passionate about providing all children with the best care and education. They
place children's wellbeing and welfare at the heart of their practice. Leaders typically
understand the setting's strengths and areas for improvement. For example, they
understand where further support is needed to enhance practice. Leaders work in
partnership with families to secure the support needed to meet children's individual needs.
Parents and carers are generally positive about the setting. They say staff and leaders keep
them informed about transitions, sleeping routines, feeding and nappy changes. Parents
comment on the progress their children have made in communication and language. They
appreciate how quickly staff create individual care plans, which gives them reassurance.
Parents say the setting's online platform is useful and provides information about children's
routines, arrival times and photos of their learning and development. However, parents are
not always fully informed about their children's next steps in learning and development, to
help them extend their learning at home.
Overall, staff feel valued by leaders. They have opportunities to develop their professional
expertise and skills. For example, leaders have identified further training around special
educational needs and/or disabilities to support staff growth in the setting. Staff report that
leaders have an open-door policy and regularly check in with them to support their
wellbeing. This helps to ensure staff feel confident and supported in their roles.

What it's like to be a child at this setting
All children arrive happy, settled and ready to start their day in this highly inclusive setting.
Leaders and staff greet children warmly and create an immediate sense of safety and
belonging. Children are supported to enter their rooms with independence as they hang up
their bags and coats confidently. They settle quickly and choose breakfast, if they wish, or
engage in activities. Staff are deeply attentive and welcoming. They offer reassurance
through smiles and their nurturing approach. All children have formed close, trusting bonds
with staff and seek them out readily for comfort. This helps to build children's emotional
wellbeing and sense of belonging, and it helps to reduce barriers to learning and/or
wellbeing.
Babies, including those who are new to the setting, independently explore their
environments. They wave to say hello and smile at familiar staff as they demonstrate early
social-communication skills. Babies love stories, books and sensory toys and explore with a
variety of instruments, such as maracas. They excitedly copy animal sounds, such as 'moo',
when asked, 'What sound does the cow make?'. This helps to support babies' early
communication and language development. Younger children engage in sand play, filling
and emptying buckets, using spades. Children make progress from their starting points.
They hear new vocabulary throughout the day, such as 'more', 'full' and 'taller'. Children use
these words in their play as they develop their language skills. Older children enjoy creating
hedgehogs using soft dough. They use resources, such as straws and googly eyes, to form
spikes and facial features. Children show creativity and control in their movements. They
naturally count the spikes, one by one, and proudly announce that their hedgehog has '18
spikes'. Children develop their early mathematical skills.
Leaders monitor attendance to ensure all children attend the nursery regularly. They share
information with parents and carers to promote positive habits for the future.
Next steps
Leaders should support staff to fully embed positive routines for younger children so that
they consistently understand what will happen next.
Leaders should support staff to embed high-quality interactions with children, to
consistently challenge and extend learning and build on what they already know and can
do.
Leaders should strengthen partnerships with parents and carers further, keeping them
fully informed about their children's next steps in learning and development.

Inspector:
Reena Rai-Aheer
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 2816796
Address:
192 Boldmere Road
Sutton Coldfield
B73 5UE
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 01/11/2024
Registered person: The Little Ripley Day Nurseries Limited
Register(s): EYR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:00 - 18:00
Local authority: Birmingham
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 9 September 2026
Children numbers
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with leaders, staff, children, parents and carers, and took account of
parents' written views 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.

Age range of children at the time of inspection
1 to 3
Total number of places
98
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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