URN EY477432 · Inspected 2026-04-15 · Published 2026-06-08 · Inspector: Sarah-Louise Clements
Poppies Nursery Unique reference number (URN): EY477432 Address: Poppies Nursery, Ferndale Road, SWINDON, SN2 1HL Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 30/06/2014 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: Ranu Ltd Inspection report: 15 April 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 typically achieve well across all areas of learning. Their skills build from individual starting points and reflect an inclusive approach, ensuring that all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those known or previously known to social care, and those who speak English as an additional language, are generally supported to succeed. Achievement is recognised and celebrated, helping children to develop confidence, motivation and positive attitudes towards learning. Children make good progress in communication and language and are confident to communicate with adults and peers. They begin to develop early literacy through exploring books and mark making, and develop early mathematical understanding as they recognise numbers and colours. These experiences support the essential skills needed for future learning. Children show growing independence, curiosity and resilience. They make choices and work collaboratively with others. Physical development is promoted through regular outdoor play and exploration within the local community. Overall, children develop age- and stage-appropriate knowledge and skills, enabling them to progress confidently to the next stage of learning, including readiness for school and future success. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard Leaders and staff typically provide clear expectations for behaviour. All children experience a calm, safe and inclusive environment. Staff have an effective approach in the support they provide for children's wellbeing, independence and readiness to learn. Leaders monitor practice closely and support staff to apply approaches consistently for all groups of children. Staff build positive relationships with children through warm interactions and consistent care. They take time to get to know children and understand their needs from the moment they start at the nursery. Leaders and staff work closely with families to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those known or previously known to social care and those who speak English as an additional language. These trusting relationships help children feel safe and secure. Children develop positive attitudes to learning. Staff play with children and encourage them to have a go. They help develop children's independence, while using clear routines to help children manage transitions and behaviour. If children display unwanted behaviour, staff quickly defuse this by distracting children and engaging them in favoured activities. Children are happy and confident. Leaders promote good attendance and work proactively with families to remove barriers. They talk to families about the importance of regular attendance and punctuality in readiness for school, while providing flexibility to help ensure children's attendance. Inclusive approaches help to enable every child to thrive and succeed. Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard Leaders typically promote children's health and wellbeing effectively. Staff are positive role models and encourage healthy practice, such as supporting children to wash their hands at appropriate times and respectfully tending to their personal care needs. Children enjoy nutritious meals and snacks and learn about oral hygiene through planned activities. Children have lots of opportunities to learn about the world around them and play outside. Staff take all children into the local community, visiting open spaces and the local church. Children learn safety outside of the nursery. Leaders and staff carefully consider how they can best support children's emotional wellbeing as they move between rooms in the setting. They make well-considered adaptations to enable children to feel reassured during periods of change. For example, children move to new rooms in line with their stage of development, familiar staff support children in their new environment to help ensure a successful change. Decisions are made in partnership with parents and carers, so children remain settled and experience smooth transitions. Staff are generally responsive to children's needs and know them well. Children who have very recently started at the nursery are well settled. Staff ensure children are safely seated and supervised at mealtimes, and make sure they can sleep safely and in comfort. Curriculum and teaching Expected standard Leaders have a clear oversight of the curriculum and teaching across the nursery. They ensure the curriculum reflects children's starting points and they reflect on the implementation and impact regularly. Leaders support staff through guidance and professional development to promote consistency, however, they do not always ensure staff tailor the curriculum effectively for toddlers. Staff design and deliver a well-structured and sequenced curriculum for babies and pre- school children. The curriculum clearly identifies what children need to know and do, and supports progression across all areas of learning, with a strong emphasis on communication and language, personal development and physical skills. However, curriculum design and delivery is not as clear or well-structured for toddlers, and learning does not always match their developmental stage. Staff create a roll the ball activity for a small group, children quickly lose focus and others are unaware of what is happening. Staff do not think about how learning can be tailored for differing needs. Staff generally deliver teaching that supports children's learning. Adults create engaging learning environments, model language and use interactions to support progress. Staff observe children and assess learning to plan next steps. Pre-school children develop their imagination in addition to their literacy and numeracy skills while using keyboards and notepads in the 'office' role-play area. Babies cruise around low-level furniture, developing their strength for walking. Toddlers develop their sensory skills when they explore paint with various resources. Staff promote an inclusive curriculum. They make adaptations for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, disadvantaged children and those who speak English as an additional language. Staff typically use Makaton and simple phrases to aid children's communication and understanding. However, this is not yet embedded effectively to fully support children's developing communication skills. Inclusion Expected standard Leaders and staff demonstrate a clear commitment to inclusion and typically identify, assess and respond to children's needs in a timely way. They use assessment information to plan support, adapt the environment and reduce barriers to children's learning and wellbeing. For example, they ensure children are supported in an environment that is appropriate for their developmental level to ensure they are safe and can access learning successfully. Leaders and staff support disadvantaged children appropriately and use resources to promote equality of access to learning experiences and opportunities. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities benefit from early identification, clear support plans and effective partnership working with parents and external professionals. Leaders review plans regularly and adjust strategies to support children's progress. Leaders prioritise the needs of children who are known, or previously known, to children's social care. Staff understand children's individual circumstances and provide consistent, nurturing support to promote emotional security and wellbeing. Leaders identify children who speak English as an additional language when they start at the nursery and recognise the barriers they face. Leaders have strategies in place to support children. However, staff do not consistently use these across the nursery to support these children to understand routines, develop communication or fully access learning. At times, these children are unaware of the routine expectations and are unable to engage successfully with the learning on offer. Leadership and governance Expected standard Leaders are passionate about providing a safe and positive environment for all that attend. They base this on their evaluation of the setting's strengths and areas for development. Since the last inspection, leaders have worked hard to improve practice, particularly for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They have reviewed identification procedures, strengthened partnerships with external professionals and ensured staff typically implement targeted support for children. As a result, children with SEND are better supported to make progress from their starting points. Governance arrangements are effective. Those responsible for oversight offer appropriate challenge and support to leaders, ensuring statutory requirements are met. Regular audits, supervision and monitoring processes enable leaders and governors to maintain a clear overview of practice, safeguarding and quality of provision. Staff speak highly of leaders, they state that they are well supported and can approach leaders and/or governors of the setting if they have any concerns. Supervision meetings and the leaders open door policy are successful in supporting staff to address concerns and promote a positive team culture. Staff feel valued and supported in their roles. Leaders identify training needs through observation, feedback and self-evaluation and provide relevant opportunities to develop staff knowledge and confidence. This includes training related to SEND, safeguarding and curriculum delivery, which has been identified as an area for development in parts of the provision. Leaders are highly reflective and evaluative of their setting, always looking at how they can improve to provide the best environment they can for all. Parents state that they are well supported by leaders and staff. Their children love to attend and make progress in their learning. Leaders involve parents in their child's nursery life and value their input. They offer stay-and-play sessions, sports days and invite parents to seasonal events. Those parents who are unable to attend these events are offered alternatives, so they too can be involved in their child's nursery life. 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 Voluntary Childcare Register requirements This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register. How we check if a provider meets the requirements of the Voluntary Childcare Register When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes: Met Not met What it's like to be a child at this setting Children arrive happy and excited for their day at nursery. They are greeted happily by a familiar face and are ready to start their day. Leaders and staff know all children well. They know what children can do and what their next steps are. Children show that they feel safe and secure in the nursery environment, they seek staff for interactions and invite them into their play. Children are confident to explore the playroom, seek favoured activities and generally engage with purpose. Leaders and staff implement a typically well-sequenced curriculum to support all children through the areas of learning in the early years foundation stage. This quality of the curriculum varies across different age groups. Children are motivated to learn. The youngest children enjoy small group times, they recognise their own picture for self-registration and copy the actions from staff during familiar songs. Toddlers build towers with staff, counting 1, 2, 3 and naming the colours. Pre-school children learn about caring for new siblings and their own personal care needs when they bathe, dress and sit dolls on the potty. Children behave well and any minor disagreements are dealt with quickly. Staff know children well and how best to support their behaviour and wellbeing needs. Children who have recently started are very well settled and form positive relationships with staff and their peers. Children access a well organised environment that promotes independence and choice. Older children serve their own food, pour drinks and manage resources with growing confidence. Younger children learn to manage their own coats and shoes. Staff introduce purposeful activities that build essential social skills, such as turn-taking and cooperative play. Children learn alongside their peers and feel included in all aspects of the nursery. Leaders monitor attendance closely and work proactively with families to reduce barriers to learning and access funding on offer, ensuring all children receive the support needed to achieve well. Next steps Leaders should secure staff knowledge of curriculum delivery with toddlers so they are confident in implementing it and children consistently benefit from intended learning. Leaders should ensure there is effective support and use of strategies to help children who speak English as an additional language to fully access learning on offer and understand routine tasks. Inspector: Sarah-Louise Clements About this setting Unique reference number (URN): EY477432 Address: Poppies Nursery Ferndale Road SWINDON SN2 1HL Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registration date: 30/06/2014 Registered person: Ranu Ltd Register(s): EYR, CCR, VCR Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:00 - 19:00 Local authority: Swindon Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 15 April 2026 Children numbers About this inspection The inspector spoke with leaders, staff, 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. Age range of children at the time of inspection 0 to 4 Total number of places 60 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. 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