Nursery fights back after dropping Ofsted grading

The education watchdog visited Cheeky Monkeys, on Long Lane, Chapel-en-le-Frith, and rated all areas from the quality of teaching and learning, to outcomes for children and their behaviour as well as the leadership and management, as ‘requires improvement’.

For the past 15 years, the nursery has been rated as ‘good’.

Now Cheeky Monkeys has lodged a complaint with Ofsted, claiming none of its paperwork was inspected and parents were not spoken to.

Owner Claire Millner said: “It is really disappointing that one person’s opinion can affect our business.

“What matters to us is what our parents think of us and they too feel the report is unjustified.

“We have already addressed the matters which were laid out in the report for us to improve, and we look forward to our next inspection when we will return to a good grading.”

Inspector Lianne McElvaney said in the report: “The quality of teaching is variable within the setting. Staff do not consistently develop children’s play to challenge their learning. As a result, some children do not make enough progress.”

The report noted ‘staff do not consistently complete precise assessments of all children’s progress to identify their next steps in learning’.

Ms McElvaney continued: “The management team does not monitor staff practice precisely enough to identify the support they need to help them raise the quality of their teaching to a higher level.”

The report also highlight some of the nursery’s strengths, which include a welcoming environment where children enjoy their time and are encouraged to take turns and share.

Staff were noted as being ‘compassionate and caring’.

Now the nursery must continue to develop effective links with other settings that children attend to robustly promote continuity of care and learning.