Ducklings Day Nursery

Ducklings Day Nursery
Unique reference number (URN): 2862720
Address: Ducklings Day Nursery, 170 Attleborough Road, Nuneaton, CV11 4JW
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 11/11/2025
Registers: EYR
Registered person: TLNI
Inspection report: 7 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.

Expected standard
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Overall, staff support children to behave well. Staff provide brief explanations to children
regarding the consequences of their behaviour.
Staff working with the babies provide opportunities during play and routines for them to be
alongside their peers and become familiar with one another. Staff explain to babies what is
happening next to help them become familiar with their routines. Staff working with children
with special educational needs and/or disabilities use resources, such as picture cards and
prompts, to help them to understand what is next. This helps them to prepare for the
routines throughout the day.
Children's attendance is monitored and staff know what they must do if a child does not
attend a short time after their expected time of arrival. Leaders record the action they take,
such as calling children's parents and carers or other professionals.
Some children demonstrate positive attitudes to learning. Pre-school children keenly engage
in role play in the home area. They chat with their peers, sharing their ideas about the roles
of 'mummy', 'daddy' and 'big sister' that they are acting out. Children aged 2- to 3-years-old
enjoy making models with play dough. They talk about what they have made, and leaders
suggest what else they could make from the dough.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard
Children are cared for in a safe environment. Their wellbeing is promoted as staff take steps
to ensure that all children feel secure in their environment. Staff who work with the youngest
children are gentle and caring. All children are welcomed by staff they know, and this
supports their sense of belonging and emotional security.
Generally, children learn about healthy lifestyles. Some staff talk with the children about the
benefits of healthy eating. They explain that eating good food can help them to grow big and
strong. Children really enjoy the fresh food that is provided and most have second helpings.
They readily tuck into freshly prepared noodles with chicken and vegetables. Staff are aware
of children with food intolerances and allergies. This information is shared with the chef in a
timely way, who provides meals accordingly to meet the children's needs. The serving of
food is well managed with a system that ensures children only access foods that they
should.
Children of all ages learn about the importance of good hygiene practices. Bedding supplied
for babies and young children who sleep is freshly laundered and only used by one child.
Babies and children who require a sleep are monitored by staff with frequent checks. Staff
have suitable understanding of safer-sleeping guidance and the associated risks.

Inclusion Expected standard
Overall, leaders and staff develop relationships with parents and carers and other
professionals involved in the children's care. Staff find out from parents about their children's
care needs and current stage of development.
Staff caring for the most vulnerable children have a real passion for ensuring they are
provided with the best possible outcomes, in relation to their starting points. Settling-in
arrangements are tailored to support each child and their family, with additional time being
afforded to those with additional needs. Staff work collaboratively with parents and other
professionals to support these children.
Staff know how to adapt resources and the environment to support all of the children. In the
pre-school room, a sensory area has been designated specifically to support children with
additional needs. This ensures they are surrounded by the resources that will help them to
self-regulate and to also support their interests.
Leaders, the special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) and staff supporting children
with special educational needs and/or disabilities, have experience in this area and access
training in a timely way. The manager's oversight of the role of the SENCo and staff is
effective in promoting inclusive practice for all children who attend.
Leadership and governance Expected standard
Leaders have effective oversight of the nursery. A full review of all aspects of the nursery
has been undertaken, and an action plan is in place. Changes have been made to the
environment and high-quality resources have been obtained. The leadership team have a
secure understanding of the nursery's strengths and areas for improvement, to increase
outcomes for the children who attend. Some steps have been taken to improve the
curriculum on offer and support staff's understanding of using what they know children can
do, to plan for their learning. Leaders are also introducing in-the-moment planning, to ensure
children's learning is based on their interests. However, this is not currently embedded well
enough for some children.
Leaders are aware of the different barriers to learning that children may face at different
times in their lives. Leaders actively engage with other professionals, and they are aware of
the benefits of working with other providers when children transition from one provider to
another.
Partnership working with other providers in the main is successful. Parents and carers are
extremely pleased with the care their children receive. They comment that the change of
ownership was smooth and that there have been noticeable positive changes in relation to
communication and security of the premises.

Needs attention
Achievement Needs attention
Some children are progressing generally well in relation to their starting points across the 7
areas of learning. Staff use their knowledge of the children's development and plan to
support their next steps in learning. However, this is variable across the age groups and
impacts on the achievements that some children make.
Pre-school children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are
developing skills in becoming independent learners. They are developing at a positive rate.
This is because throughout their day at nursery, they frequently make choices for
themselves, play quietly alone, or join in activities with their friends. This supports them in
readiness for school.
Rising 3-year-olds are developing a range of language and vocabulary. They learn new
words, such as 'stomp', as they pretend to be dinosaurs. Children aged 2- to 3-years-old are
confident in communicating their needs with staff through their actions and words.
Curriculum and teaching Needs attention
Under the new ownership, leaders have been observing and evaluating the quality of the
curriculum and teaching. They have identified some of the areas that need to be improved
and have created action plans to help staff improve their understanding of in-the-moment
planning and responding to children's emerging interests.
Some improvements are beginning to take effect for some age groups of children,
supporting the progress they make. However, this still requires more attention to be fully
effective for all ages of children, and most specifically, the children aged 2- to 3-years-old.
For this age group, although staff are familiar with some of what the children know and can
already do, their desired next steps are too generic and not individual for each child, which
means that the curriculum for these children lacks ambition.
Staff caring for babies adapt activities for those who are less keen on messy play, or who
may be new to this experience. This means that all the children have opportunities to make
marks and develop their core physical skills.

What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children's safety is assured as leaders and staff consider all potential risks in their
environment and take action to address potential risks as they arrive. For example, they
swiftly remove plastic carrier bags that are left in the cloakroom area. Leaders have effective
oversight of safeguarding, and they ensure that all staff know what they must do in the event
of a concern about a child in their care. Arrangements regarding the procedure to follow in
relation to non-attendance have recently been reviewed, which has enhanced the
effectiveness of records and, in turn, the sharing of information with other professionals.
Overall, children benefit from the relationships between the nursery and other providers.
Children arrive happy most of the time and readily separate from their parents and carers
and siblings. Staff find out about children's wellbeing on arrival, and this helps them to
understand the needs of the child for the day ahead. For example, for the younger children,
staff ask parents about the quality of their sleep. Children who are less settled on arrival are
greeted by staff they know well. They enjoy a cuddle and words of comfort as they go and
join their friends to play. Children share positive relationships with their peers and with the
staff who care for them. Children welcome adults into the games they create, such as
pretending to be dinosaurs, roaring, stomping and chasing one another.
Some of the learning, both indoors and outside, supports children's next steps in their
learning and builds on what they already know and can do, but this is not consistent across
all age groups, specifically for the children aged 2- to 3-years-old.
Pre-school children are provided with activities with clear learning intentions, such as
beginning to understand how they are unique to others and learning about their similarities
and differences. Using a mirror, they talk about their individual characteristics, such as the
colour of their eyes. However, at times, the quality of teaching does not extend children's
progress to support the learning intentions or follow their emerging interests, such as when
they talk about compost and worms and become animated as they tell a member of staff
about a puncture in a car tyre.
Next steps
To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage the provider must take the
following actions by the assigned date:
Action Completion Date
ensure that the curriculum for all children is ambitious to
help them make as much progress as they can
29/09/2026
make sure that staff follow children's interests and use
what they know about their current stage of
development to plan for their next steps in their learning
29/09/2026

Inspector:
Hayley Lapworth
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 2862720
Address:
Ducklings Day Nursery
170 Attleborough Road
Nuneaton
CV11 4JW
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 11/11/2025
Registered person: TLNI
Register(s): EYR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 17:30
Local authority: Warwickshire
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 7 September 2026
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with leaders, practitioners, the special educational needs coordinator,
parents and children 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.

Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
0 to 4
Total number of places
88
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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