URN 2767636 · Inspected 2026-02-20 · Published 2026-04-27 · Inspector: Carly Mooney
Ashbourne Day Nurseries at Orton Southgate Unique reference number (URN): 2767636 Address: Brightfield Business Hub, Bakewell Road, Orton Southgate, Peterborough, PE2 6XU Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 07/12/2023 Registers: EYR Registered person: Ashbourne Day Nurseries Limited Inspection report: 20 February 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 Achievement Strong standard Children progress very well from their individual starting points, including those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who may face additional barriers to their learning. Children build essential skills that shape them to be confident, capable and fully ready for school. They can confidently express their needs and manage their self-care. Children develop their large movements and coordination effectively in the garden as they ride, scoot and run around. Young children are developing their understanding and vocabulary. Older children confidently hold two-way conversations with staff about their home lives. All children develop listening and attention skills as they snuggle up to hear stories. Older children use their imagination well. They dress up as superheroes and confidently talk about their superpowers and what this means. They articulately express their opinions and lead their play. Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard Leaders provide an environment, where children feel safe and secure. Positive key-person relationships are highly effective in consistently meeting children's needs. Babies new to the setting settle very easily. They quickly form close bonds with trusted adults, climbing on to their knees for a cuddle. Staff are considerate and respectful towards children. They ask to change babies' nappies and ensure they are given privacy at nappy changing times. Older children are encouraged to express how they are feeling using familiar visual aids. Staff consistently teach children how to attend to their own care needs. Older children have their own self-care station with tissues and a mirror. This encourages them to blow their own nose and wipe their face, when needed, and to check if their faces are clean. Children know to place the tissue in the bin and wash their hands to prevent the spread of germs. Children are encouraged to gain a sense of responsibility as they tidy away toys and help to clean up any spillages they may accidently make at mealtimes. Staff support children in developing effective oral health routines. Babies quickly gain the security to curiously explore their surroundings and are physically active. Physical resources in their room help them to build the core muscles needed for walking and they have plenty of opportunities to practise these skills. Inclusion Strong standard Leaders have created a very inclusive culture within the nursery, and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are incredibly well supported and prioritised. Leaders and staff very quickly identify and put targeted strategies in place to meet children's needs from the minute they start at the nursery. They work extremely closely with other professionals and parents to ensure children can be supported to achieve their full potential. This includes attending and supporting parents at professional meetings. Staff regularly review and adapt the environment and resources to remove barriers to children's learning Expected standard and increase participation. This proactive approach enables every child to engage fully in their play and learning experience. The nursery special educational needs coordinator is dedicated and passionate about helping children with SEND to achieve their potential. She holds regular meetings with children's key persons to ensure support for children's learning is precisely tailored to their need. This also helps staff to feel empowered and fully involved in any decision-making. Leaders consistently review and adapt how any additional funding is allocated to ensure maximum impact on children's progress and development. Children who speak English as an additional language are highly valued and appreciated. Staff make every effort to learn children's home languages and customs. Leadership and governance Strong standard Leaders and staff are fully committed to providing the very best childcare and education for all children that attend. There is a clear vision for the nursery and high expectations of staff to deliver an effective curriculum that consistently supports and encourages all children to achieve their full potential. Leaders are constantly reflecting on their provision. They accurately identify their strengths and take clear action to meet any areas for improvement. Leaders regularly monitor staff practice and identify professional development opportunities to ensure teaching practice is of a high quality and always evolving. They instil confidence in staff and help them understand what is expected of them. Staff thoroughly enjoy working in the nursery and feel very valued and supported. Morale is high and this helps to provide a warm, positive environment for both staff and children. Leaders and staff are highly engaged with parents. Positive, working relationships are built right from the start to ensure everybody has children's best interests at heart. Staff support parents to help with transitions and preparing their children for school. For example, they deliver school readiness information sessions and provide home-learning bags. The highly effective leadership helps to ensure that all children, including those who may face barriers, thrive in their learning and development, setting them up for success in their later learning and life. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard Children generally behave well and show positive attitudes to learning. Staff use behaviour management strategies that include promoting positive behaviour and typically provide appropriate support that meets all children's individual needs. Leaders have very recently changed some aspects of the routine at mealtimes. These continue to be embedded. However, at times children's waiting times are too long. This leaves some children unsure of what to do and so they become restless and disruptive. Staff are kind and caring, and good role models for all children. They help children show care and kindness towards others and children confidently demonstrate these skills with their peers. For example, when their friends are sad, they offer comfort and check on their wellbeing. Staff use visual aids and books to help children express how they are feeling. Children listen and follow instructions well. They learn how to share and take turns from a young age. Leaders consistently promote attendance and punctuality. They work closely with all families, reinforcing expectations and offering support where barriers arise. This ensures that all children, including disadvantaged children, those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those known to social care, are supported to maintain routines. Curriculum and teaching Expected standard Leaders have developed a clear curriculum that builds progressively from the baby room through to pre-school. They monitor and assess how well the curriculum is being implemented and work closely with staff to ensure teaching is consistently of a high quality. A recent focus on expressive arts and design has improved staff's understanding and planning in this area to ensure children have a range of opportunities to be creative and express themselves in different ways. Staff support children's language development throughout the day by modelling vocabulary, encouraging repetition and engaging children in songs, stories and meaningful conversations. Staff take opportunities during children's play to secure and extend their knowledge. They help children develop their understanding of mathematical concepts. For example, staff encourage children to count and find displayed numbers on their way to the garden. They introduce simple calculation in routine activities, such as counting how many plates are needed for the number of children at the table. Children's learning environment and experiences in the outdoor environment, especially for babies, are not as well developed. Leaders acknowledge this and plan to provide babies with their own dedicated space. This should help staff to plan more effectively to meet babies' learning needs when accessing the garden. What it's like to be a child at this setting Children enjoy their time in this warm and welcoming nursery. They and their families are warmly greeted on arrival by familiar adults. This helps children to quickly settle in their base rooms and engage in purposeful play. Staff celebrate and value every child. The key-person system is highly effective in helping children to form positive relationships and develop a Inspector: Carly Mooney About this setting true sense of belonging. This is reflected in their warm, genuine bonds and shows that they feel safe and secure. All children are very well prepared for starting school. They learn behaviour boundaries and show respect for others. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those known to social care or those that face other barriers to their learning receive specific, tailored support that enables them to thrive. Children demonstrate positive attitudes to learning. They are confident, show curiosity and are willing to have a go. Children enthusiastically explore books and resources. Sensory play opportunities are fun. Children explore ice, sand and shredded paper. They create caterpillars with dough and make patterns using truck wheels in dough. Children are active and enjoy their time outside, where they can develop their large physical skills. Children build their fine-motor skills through activities, using glue sticks, pencils and tweezers. Parents receive regular communication about their children's progress and have frequent opportunities to discuss targeted next steps. A book-lending library encourages families to foster a love of reading. Parents feel valued and respected. They talk warmly about leaders and staff. Parents particularly appreciate the high level of support and guidance they receive and know that staff have their children's best interest at the heart of everything they do. Next steps Leaders should continue to strengthen staff practice to embed newly developed routines, particularly at mealtimes. Leaders should enhance the curriculum and teaching outdoors, especially for babies. About this inspection The inspector spoke with leaders, children, the special educational needs coordinator and other staff 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. Unique reference number (URN): 2767636 Address: Brightfield Business Hub Bakewell Road, Orton Southgate Peterborough PE2 6XU Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registration date: 07/12/2023 Registered person: Ashbourne Day Nurseries Limited Register(s): EYR Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 18:00 Local authority: Peterborough Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 20 February 2026 Children numbers Age range of children at the time of inspection 1 to 4 Total number of places 57 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