High Melton Day Nursery

High Melton Day Nursery
Unique reference number (URN): 2790137
Address: Principals House, Doncaster Road, High Melton, Doncaster, DN5 7SY
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 09/05/2024
Registers: EYR
Registered person: High Melton Day Nursery Limited
Inspection report: 6 May 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 are generally well prepared for the next stage in learning. Younger children are
beginning to develop their communication skills effectively and demonstrate that they listen
well to stories and rhymes. They enthusiastically join in with familiar refrains within nursery
rhymes and songs they know well. Older children show that they are increasingly ready for
school. For instance, they show curiosity and a willingness to solve problems as they create
slopes to roll their toy cars down and see who's goes the fastest or find ways to carry their
friends on their three-wheeled vehicles.
Babies and young children are learning to play socially as they join their friends in group
time games and songs. Older children are increasingly independent and support their
friends to work together when it is time to tidy up. Children who may face barriers to learning
and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities achieve well in acquiring key
skills that support their future learning.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are courteous,
friendly and behave well throughout the nursery. As the nursery has grown and taken on
more children, leaders and staff have reviewed and developed daily routines to support
children's wellbeing and positive behaviour. For example, older children learn to help each
other to walk up and down the stairs with care and patience.
Staff are warm and encouraging role models. For example, they sing along with children as
they tidy away or praise them for their teamwork and care as they construct an obstacle
course together. As a result, children are proud of their efforts and eager to work and play
together. Staff build nurturing bonds with babies and young children that help them to feel
safe and confident in their surroundings. For example, staff work closely with parents to
understand daily sleeping and eating routines to support babies to feel relaxed, refreshed
and eager to learn.
Leaders set clear expectations for children's attendance and punctuality. As a result,
children attend regularly and parents know procedures for reporting and managing
absences.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard
Leaders and staff have a clear focus on promoting children's welfare and wellbeing overall.
Since the last inspection, they have sharply developed routines to build children's
independence and personal management. For example, children take increasing
responsibility for preparing and sharing their fresh and nutritious food at snack and
mealtimes. For example, young children are supported well to progress from drinking
through straws and spouts to open cups and pouring their own drinks. However, staff do not
consistently take all opportunities to promote children's awareness and understanding of
healthy living, for example, through mealtime conversations and during physical activities.

Staff help children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and
others who face barriers to their learning, to recognise and manage their own emotions. For
instance, they plan careful, small steps to help children who find it difficult to share and take
their turn and they effectively model positive behaviours. Staff make considered use of
books, songs and games to enrich children's emotional understanding.
Leaders and staff help babies and children develop their personal hygiene and safe play.
They make positive use of songs and stories, for example, to help children learn to wash
their hands and to support older children's toilet training.
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
From the time the nursery opened, leaders have worked closely with staff to create a
curriculum that builds sequentially on all areas of babies and children's learning. They have
well-established induction training programmes for staff to support them to understand and
teach the curriculum effectively overall. However, staff do not take all opportunities to fully
deepen and embed children's learning. For example, through using questioning and
modelling strategies to extend knowledge, skills and understanding further.
Staff focus well on the development of children's communication and language skills. For
example, they build learning round well-chosen songs and books to create memorable
experiences, knowledge and vocabulary. Babies and young children learn to repeat simple
rhymes and phrases in nursery rhymes and action songs. Older children explain who the
characters are in their favourite story and follow increasingly complex plots.
Staff help children to build their mathematical skills and vocabulary. They identify key stages
of development through the curriculum. For example, babies learn to recognise quantities of
small groups of objects and simple repeated patterns. Older children build on these skills to
count accurately and compare different sizes and shapes.
Inclusion Expected standard
Leaders create an inclusive culture where children and their families feel part of the nursery
community from the start. Staff know all the children in their care well. They build bonds with
babies and children and accurately and regularly assess their needs and achievements.
Staff identify any gaps in children's learning at an early stage and work closely with parents
to identify and plan for the next steps in the children's development. Leaders ensure children
with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), disadvantaged and vulnerable
children typically receive the support they need to give them the skills and experiences for
their learning. For example, they target the use of additional funding to develop their areas
of greatest need. This includes providing some staff training on, for example, children's
behaviour and emotional development and on climbing and balancing resources to support
children's physical development. Occasionally, however, staff do not make full use of
interactions with children to further deepen learning for children including those who face
barriers to their learning.
Leaders and staff regularly review the progress of children with SEND to ensure that the
planning closely matches their ongoing learning and development needs. They work with
other professionals, such as physiotherapists, health visitors and speech and language
therapists, to ensure that the targets for children's learning are suitably challenging,

proportional and achievable. Parents are reassured by the leaders and staff's knowledge
and understanding and appreciate the gains their children make.
Leadership and governance Expected standard
Leaders know the children who attend the setting and their families well. They have
promptly identified children who may require additional support or may face barriers to their
learning. Leaders have supported staff effectively to understand their role in supporting all
children to achieve well, including children who may have special educational needs and/or
disabilities (SEND). There has been a steadily increasing staff team since the nursery was
first opened. All staff comment that they feel very well supported by leaders. They state that
leaders listen to any concerns they may have and always act in the best interests of the
children and families who attend.
Leaders understand their role in working with other professionals who may be involved in a
child's life. They know who to speak to and the processes to follow if they are ever worried
about a child's safety or development.
Leaders have an accurate view of the nursery's strengths and weaknesses. They recognise
that the quality of teaching is typically effective. Leaders provide professional development
opportunities for staff. However, these are not yet sharply focused on developing
consistently high-quality teaching experiences for all children.
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children and babies are typically happy and fulfilled throughout their time in this welcoming
and supportive nursery. Children, including those with special educational needs and/or
disabilities and other vulnerable learners, progress well from their individual starting points
to develop the skills, knowledge and attitudes they need for their future learning including
starting school.
Babies are helped to build strong bonds with staff and others. They learn to listen, enjoy and
join in with action songs, nursery rhymes and stories staff share with them. This helps them
to develop their early communication and speaking skills. Older children build on these skills
as they learn to sit and listen to stories for extended periods and repeat phrases from their
favourite books or talk about the activities they have enjoyed during the session, They
warmly appreciate the attention they receive from staff and are encouraged by the praise

Inspector:
Andrew Clark
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 2790137
Address:
Principals House
and attention they receive. Children attend regularly and parents are clear of the staff's
expectations and the procedures for informing the nursery if their child cannot attend.
Children learn to be confident and increasingly independent overall. They make choices
about the toys they play with and learn to work together. They build the skills for working
together. For example, babies learn to take turns as they pick puppets from a mystery bag to
prompt the songs they sing. Older children take pride in putting any uneaten food into
recycling bins and helping to set and tidy tables at meal and snack times. Children learn to
play safely as they develop their physical skills by pushing their ride-on toys with their feet
and later learning to pedal and balance. They love to explore the nursery's exciting outdoor
play areas and natural woodlands.
Next steps
Leaders should focus on strengthening staff's consistent interaction with children to more
deeply embed children's knowledge and skills development.
Leaders should support staff to make the maximum use of all opportunities, such as
mealtimes, to fully enhance children's understanding and appreciation of a healthy eating
and lifestyle.
Leaders should continue to build on staff's effective professional development to bring the
quality of teaching to the highest levels to raise achievement further.
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with the leaders, staff 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.

Doncaster Road
High Melton
Doncaster
DN5 7SY
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 09/05/2024
Registered person: High Melton Day Nursery Limited
Register(s): EYR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00
Local authority: Doncaster
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 6 May 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
0 to 4
Total number of places
30
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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