Linden Tree Nursery School

Linden Tree Nursery School
Unique reference number (URN): EY309037
Address: 52 - 54 Webb's Road, Battersea, London, SW11 6SF
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 21/06/2005
Registers: EYR, CCR
Registered person: Linden Tree Nursery Schools Limited
Inspection report: 4 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
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard
Children have positive attitudes to learning, building relationships and understanding
routines. Staff consistently encourage children to understand different types of behaviours
and how they make others feel. Staff are consistently positive role models when speaking to
the children and each other. They use manners during interactions and treat each other with
kindness, which is imitated by children.
Children play collaboratively from a young age through encouragement from staff. For
example, they play throwing and catching games and role-play cooking activities together,
taking turns and learning from each other. Children enjoy helping staff with day-to-day tasks,
such as tidying away after sleep time. Children support each other to do this. As a result,
children build on their understanding of responsibilities.
Staff use timely warnings for transitions, supporting children's understanding of routines.
Picture cards of the routine are displayed in the rooms where children can see what will be
happening next. Staff support children who face barriers to their learning by using objects to
support understanding of different parts of the routine. For example, they show children a
nappy for changing time. This ensures all children's needs are considered and they
understand what they will be doing next.
Leaders and staff implement a consistent key-person system, ensuring there is a continuity
of care for each child, and for parents to confidently liaise regarding development. Leaders
have a secure understanding of how attendance and punctuality are important to support
learning opportunities. This is communicated with parents, creating continuity between the
home and setting. Staff and leaders ensure that communication with parents is consistent
regarding behaviour, sharing updates and guidance on how to support, actively keeping
parents involved in their child's development.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard
Leaders and staff prioritise children's safety and happiness and their love to learn. They
ensure that all children's wellbeing needs are met and prioritised. Policies and procedures
are rigorously checked and updated to mirror the early years foundation stage effectively.
These are shared with all parents and staff, ensuring they are completely understood.
Staff provide consistent learning opportunities at every mealtime, exploring social
interactions and language and understanding healthy eating. For example, children are
asked to identify what foods they can see and whether they are healthy or not. Healthy and
nutritious meals are provided for children, and they are encouraged to try new tastes and
textures, for example, having the option to add fresh mint into their drinking water. Children
independently identify the need for hygiene routines, with older children washing their hands
and faces themselves after mealtimes.
Children are very well supported in their emotional development, where there is an allocated
calm, feelings area. Children explore emotion pictures and mirrors to identify their own

Expected standard
emotions. Emotion books are presented to children to explore. As a result, they refuel and
regulate.
Leaders ensure that parents are up to date with transitions regarding self-care, such as toilet
training. There is secure two-way communication, ensuring that children receive continuity,
supporting them to manage their own personal needs. Staff know all children extremely well,
which is evident through discussion and interactions. This ensures that all children, including
those with barriers to their learning, are understood and progress well. Staff know that some
children need additional support in specific areas to benefit their individual needs, for
example, during mealtimes and becoming less attached to comforters.
Leadership and governance Strong standard
Leaders are extremely passionate about ensuring all children receive positive learning
opportunities, become confident learners and are safe in the environment. They make
decisions that are in the best interests of children, particularly when developments can be
made to support their learning and wellbeing. Leaders reflect frequently on their strengths
and areas of improvement effectively and identify where and how to implement changes. All
leaders communicate superbly well and ensure there is continuity of understanding the
setting as a whole through regular management meetings and dialogue.
Leaders create and maintain secure and positive relationships with all parents. They host
stay-and-play sessions for parents to be actively involved in understanding what their
children do in the day, as well as cultural celebrations throughout the year. Parents
particularly praise this as one of the setting's many strengths. Leaders and staff share
children's development with parents in various ways, ensuring they understand the progress
that has been made and how to support further. Leaders understand the importance of
offering help to parents and the wider community. For example, they have created a scheme
offering care packages, including nappies and clothing.
Leaders follow safer recruitment procedures to ensure that staff are suitable and
appropriately qualified to work with children. Staff are deployed effectively across the setting
to ensure the quality of care for children is consistent and beneficial for children. Leaders
ensure staff wellbeing is prioritised and supported. Leaders have frequent meetings with
staff, offering support both personally and professionally. Staff undertake mandatory training
and are offered further learning opportunities, such as leadership and management courses,
either when asked for themselves or identified by leaders. As a result, staff are motivated to
progress in their professional development and career. All staff positively praise the
leadership team on the support and opportunities offered to them.
Achievement Expected standard
Overall, all children generally progress well from their starting points, including children who
face barriers to their learning and those who speak English as an additional language. They

develop confidence and self-awareness and form positive attitudes to learning through
individualised support and smaller group activities.
Children practise their independence skills throughout the day. They serve their own meals,
clean their own faces and hands, learn tidying up skills, identify their belongings and
individual pegs and can effectively make decisions in their play. This ensures they are ready
for the next stages of their lives. Children show an understanding of how to follow rules and
how to resolve unwanted behaviours if they arise. Babies explore early mark-making and
use crayons and paint brushes to make marks. They develop small physical skills and
hand–eye coordination from an early age.
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Leaders have designed an effective and child-led curriculum, particularly following the
Froebelian approach, where the setting focuses on child-initiated play using nature to
explore the world around them. Leaders are aware of what they want children to learn
across all ages and abilities. Leaders and staff show an understanding that all children are
individual and progress at different stages. Staff generally understand children's interests
well and incorporate these into activity plans to support children's development.
Staff typically deliver the curriculum well and ensure that children are progressing from their
starting points. Babies create secure and positive bonds with staff and other children. They
approach staff with confidence when in need of comfort or support. Staff focus on supporting
younger children's physical ability, such as crawling, taking steps and climbing. The children
use soft-play equipment to explore different ways of moving, where staff support and praise
each child individually for achievements. As a result, children feel happy and create positive
attitudes to physical challenges.
Children enjoy a range of experiences that promote curiosity and exploration in learning. For
example, older children choose from a range of herbs and spices to mix, identifying different
smells, textures and sometimes tastes. They use wooden tools to grind them into smaller
pieces and combine. Children wait patiently for their turn to choose their ingredients. As a
result, children explore their physical ability and understanding of turn-taking.
Staff read various books with enthusiasm, where children show curiosity, ask questions and
fill in the gaps of the story. Older children show an interest in choosing books and, at times,
observe them independently. This builds on children's love of books and supports their
communication development. Staff incorporate mathematical language into various activities
and day-to-day interactions. For example, they use shape names when building with
magnets and count with children as they build with wooden blocks.
Inclusion Expected standard
Leaders and staff are knowledgeable about the various barriers to learning and support
children well to ensure they are progressing from their starting points. They show
understanding of the importance of early identification and intervention. Leaders ensure that
vital personal information is gathered from parents for all children attending prior to their
start date. This ensures that leaders and staff fully understand each individual child,
including their needs and interests. Staff initiate observations of children as soon as they

start, identifying their development stages. As a result, any gaps in learning are recognised
quickly. Leaders show an ability and understanding to communicate well with parents and
outside agencies to ensure continuity is upheld for all children's development.
Leaders and staff are well trained and experienced in supporting children with special
educational needs and/or disabilities and other barriers to learning through regular
developmental meetings and training opportunities. Leaders use additional funding
effectively, where they make the decisions based on children's individual needs or interests,
ensuring support is effectively preparing children for the next stages of their lives.
Children who speak English as an additional language are well supported. For example,
leaders devise language sheets for parents to complete, detailing basic care words, which
staff can use in interactions. Children and families benefit from a bilingual staff team. For
instance, staff can support children who speak the same language, creating comfort,
especially when settling within the setting. Books are sourced and created in different
languages to ensure diversity is supported and all children feel included.
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
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children show enjoyment in their learning and benefit from opportunities to practise their
skills. For example, staff ensure children can independently access resources such as
whiteboards and markers for early mark-making and drawing. Children thrive as they make

decisions about their own learning and benefit from activities that reflect their interests.
Overall, this helps them to engage well and become confident in their own ability.
Children develop suitable communication skills through interactions and play. For example,
children engage in song and story times throughout the day. Younger children explore new
vocabulary through age-appropriate language used in play, such as single words and simple
sentences. Older children begin to explore critical thinking and longer sentences, as staff
use purposeful questioning during their play. Overall, children make suitable progress in
relation to their starting points and are well prepared for the next stage in their learning. In
addition, children who speak English as an additional language are supported by carefully
considered strategies, for example, by referring to word cards that detail basic words in the
child's home language and in English. As a result, all children become confident
communicators.
Children are supported consistently to treat each other with kindness and respect, where
staff positively role-model manners and consideration of others through discussions of
feelings and emotions. This strengthens bonds between the children and staff, creating a
welcoming and happy environment. All children benefit from being supported by staff who
are very knowledgeable about their varying personal and academic needs. For example,
babies' individual care routines are consistently met and identified by all staff. Settling
children are well supported by staff and particularly their key person. All children build
positive bonds and seek their key person out in play, showing confidence and trust from the
beginning. This ensures that all children, including those who face barriers to their learning,
are comfortable in the setting, ready to play and develop.
Well-established behavioural expectations across the setting ensure that children are able to
identify resolutions independently and behave well. Children have access to calm areas,
which focus on emotions, where they can self-regulate and have time to reflect. As a result,
all children, including those who face barriers to their learning, feel safe, valued and
understood.
Next steps
Leaders should support staff to raise the quality of their teaching and interactions to a
consistently high level, to help children make the best possible progress.
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with leaders, practitioners, the special educational needs coordinator,
children 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

Inspector:
Jamie-Lee Kiff
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): EY309037
Address:
52 - 54 Webb's Road
Battersea
London
SW11 6SF
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 21/06/2005
Registered person: Linden Tree Nursery Schools Limited
Register(s): EYR, CCR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday : 08:00 - 18:30,Friday : 08:00 -
18:00
Local authority: Wandsworth
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 4 September 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
0 to 2
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
45
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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