URN 2721075 · Inspected 2026-04-14 · Published 2026-06-02 · Inspector: Toby Hammond
Blessings Nursery Fagley Unique reference number (URN): 2721075 Address: 68 Fagley Road, Bradford, BD2 3LT Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 30/12/2022 Registers: EYR, CCR Registered person: Blessings Day Care & Nursery Ltd Inspection report: 14 April 2026 Exceptional Strong standard Expected standard Needs attention Urgent improvement Needs attention Safeguarding standards not met Leaders have not ensured that there is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that adequately protects children from harm. Not all staff are aware of who the designated safeguarding lead is for the setting. Staff do not understand what to do if they have a safeguarding concern about a child. Consequently, they do not demonstrate that they will be able to deal with any concerns and report them to the appropriate agencies in a timely manner to ensure children's safety. The safeguarding policy for the setting states that it should be reviewed every year. However, it has not been reviewed since 2024. Thus, it does not reflect the statutory guidance of Working Together to Safeguard Children 2026. This demonstrates that safeguarding practice is poor. Furthermore, staff are not aware of the whistleblowing procedures or the action to take if they have concerns about a member of staff. 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. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention There is not a common understanding about behaviour expectations at the setting. Some staff do not correct unwanted behaviour, and expectations are not shared with the children. Not all children are engaged or focused during some adult-led activities. The impact of this is that some children do not get the most out of learning opportunities. Currently, explicit praise is not used in the setting to reinforce children's positive behaviour. This does not support children to know what is expected of them. Leaders do not ensure that the support for all children, especially those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), meets their individual learning needs. For example, staff do not support or encourage children with SEND to join in with adult-led activities. This means some children do not access the full learning offer. Staff are positive role models. They teach children to be kind and caring towards each other and how to use manners, such as saying please and thank you when giving out food. Leaders know the importance of punctuality and good attendance and the benefits of this for the children. There are policies in place to ensure that children benefit from regular attendance at the setting. Urgent improvement Achievement Urgent improvement Children do not progress well from their starting points, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They do not benefit from tailored support or adaptations to help them to become involved in play and learning. Not all children join in with adult-focused activities. This indicates that leaders have low expectations of what children can and should achieve at the setting. Children are not well prepared for their move on to their next stage of learning, including school. They are not encouraged to develop their independence. For example, children who require visual aids are not supported to follow these in practice. Timely referrals to the relevant agencies are not made for children who require external support. This means that there are delays in children's learning and development. Babies do not benefit from a range of activities that cover all areas of learning. Therefore, children cannot make progress in all areas of their development. Children are developing independence. For example, older children are able to put on their own coats. Children's welfare and wellbeing Urgent improvement Safer sleeping arrangements, in line with the latest government guidelines, are not in place. Staff lie children down to sleep with bottles in their mouths and a blanket on top of them. Some children sleep on the floor with no cot or sleeping mat. This does not support children's safety or wellbeing. In addition, staff do not follow safer eating guidance. Children are not always in sight and hearing of staff while they are eating. When staff do sit with the children, they do not position themselves in a way that enables them to supervise children appropriately. For example, they sit with their backs to children or face the backs of children's heads while they are eating. This means that they cannot react quickly in urgent situations, such as silent choking. Children in the older rooms are served small, portioned meals that are not in line with the recommended portion size for children. Some children are upset when coming into the setting. Staff do not use strategies to support these children to manage their emotions, leading to children being upset for long periods and not having a secure sense of emotional wellbeing. Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement The quality of the teaching is inconsistent. Some staff are unaware of the purpose of the activities they are carrying out. Leaders do not ensure that the curriculum is broad and ambitious for all children or that it covers all the areas of learning. Leaders have not ensured that recent changes to the curriculum have been swiftly embedded in practice. As a result, children do not make the best possible progress from their starting points. Parents are unaware of children's next steps in learning, including what they are currently working on in the setting. Staff do not provide parents with ideas to support them to continue their children's learning at home. Books are on offer for children to support their vocabulary and communication development. However, during story time, there are not clear expectations for the children's behaviour. Children are distracted and appear disinterested in the story session as they roll around on the floor and do not join in. Staff continue to read stories despite this happening. This shows that staff do not demonstrate a clear understanding of how to support children's behaviour. Staff do not appropriately identify and put plans in place for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Adaptations are not made to try to involve children and support them during activities. Therefore, these children miss out on adult-led activities and do not take part. Some staff are aware of their key children's next steps and what they want children to learn, such as supporting children's creative development through sand-play activities. There is explicit teaching of mathematics, for example, through adult-led lessons on naming different shapes. Inclusion Urgent improvement Leaders do not ensure staff are able to identify, assess and put plans in place for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They do not implement adaptations to reduce barriers to children's learning. Staff do not identify and make timely referrals for children to relevant agencies to ensure that swift interventions are made to prevent children from falling behind in their learning. Staff work with the local authority to access support and training from their skills team. They have taken on some of the points from the training and implemented these, such as having visual timetables up in the rooms. However, these aids are not typically used in all rooms, and in some cases they cannot be easily accessed by the children because they are covered by furniture. Leaders do not typically monitor children's progress and review support in place for children with SEND. They are unable to assess the impact on the children. Leaders are not aware of how additional funding is used to best support children with SEND to ensure it has a positive impact. Leadership and governance Urgent improvement There has been a change to the management of the setting, which has not been notified to Ofsted. This is a breach of requirements. Leaders are unable to identify or act on areas for improvement. For example, although they are aware that the curriculum is weak, they have not taken action to improve this. Although staff attend safeguarding training, their knowledge is still weak. They do not know who the designated safeguarding lead is within the setting. Furthermore, they do not understand the procedure to follow if they have a concern about a member of staff or the leadership team. Staff do online training and access the local authority skills team to support some professional development. Leaders do not ensure that information about children's learning and next steps is shared with parents. Some parents are unaware of what their children are currently working on and where they are in terms of their progression. Leaders do not seek support from other professionals in a timely way to ensure that all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, receive the support they need. Funding is not used appropriately to ensure that the interests and individual needs of children are met. Leaders are aware of staff members' workload. They have plans in place to delegate the workload across the team. Compulsory Childcare Register requirements This setting has not 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 Leaders do not ensure staff implement a curriculum that is ambitious and tailored to children's individual needs. They do not ensure plans and assessments are in place to monitor children's progress. Therefore, children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, do not achieve to the best of their abilities across all areas of learning. The outdoor space is limited and is not set up with clear learning intentions in mind. This means that those children who prefer to play and learn outdoors do not receive the same learning opportunities as those indoors. Children have large spaces to play indoors. They have a range of resources that are age-appropriate and available for them. Staff sometimes support children to access these. Staff do not implement strategies to support children's emotional wellbeing. Some children find it hard to settle, which leads to them being upset for long periods. Other children enjoy coming to this setting. They like to paint and develop their creative skills. Leaders do not ensure suitable sleeping arrangements are in place. Staff put children to sleep on the floor without a cot or mat for them to lie on. Staff do not follow safer sleep guidance. For example, they allow children to drink from a bottle while they are lying down. This poses a choking risk and compromises children's safety. Leaders do not ensure staff follow safer eating guidance. Children are not always in sight and hearing of staff while they are eating. This compromises children's safety and wellbeing. Leaders have not considered the nutrition guidance. Portion sizes for older children are small. This does not help to promote children's good health and wellbeing. Next steps The provider is not meeting the requirements of the Early years foundation stage and Childcare Register and Ofsted intends to take enforcement action. We will issue a Welfare Requirements Notice requiring the provider to have taken the following actions by the assigned date: Action Completion Date ensure staff have clear knowledge and understanding of safer eating guidance and ensure that children remain in sight and hearing when eating 24/04/2026 ensure staff have clear knowledge and understanding of safer sleeping guidance and ensure children are placed to sleep safely 24/04/2026 ensure policies and procedures for safeguarding are in place and understood by staff members, particularly in relation to understanding who is the the designated safeguarding lead and their role 24/04/2026 ensure that they and the staff identify, assess and put plans in place for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) 24/04/2026 To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage and Childcare Register the provider must take the following actions by the assigned date: Action Completion Date Inspector: Toby Hammond About this setting Unique reference number (URN): 2721075 Address: 68 Fagley Road Bradford BD2 3LT Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registration date: 30/12/2022 Action Completion Date ensure that the curriculum is ambitious, tailored to children's needs and embedded in practice to enable all children to make progress 22/05/2026 improve staff's understanding of how to consistently support children's behaviour 22/05/2026 ensure that additional funding is spent appropriately to meet the needs of children with SEND 22/05/2026 provide more information to parents to ensure they know where their child is in their learning and how they can continue to support this at home. 22/04/2026 About this inspection The inspector spoke with directors, leaders, practitioners, the designated safeguarding lead, the special educational needs coordinator, assistants, 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 learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage. Registered person: Blessings Day Care & Nursery Ltd Register(s): EYR, CCR Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 17:30 Local authority: Bradford Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 14 April 2026 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. 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. 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