Children are 'distressed', 'bewildered' and 'cry continuously' in a 'chaotic' nursery in Middleton which has been slammed by the education watchdog in a recent report.

Roly Poley's Private Nursery on Trinity Street offers daycare for up to 101 children aged between zero to four years old.

A recent Ofsted inspection suggests the nursery has fallen below the standard expectations of an early years provider, having plummeted from a 'good' grading in 2018 to 'inadequate' by the end of 2022.

The damning verdict comes as inspector Shauneen Wainwright visited the premises in November and had a number of concerns over safety, education and leadership.

One prominent concern in the Ofsted report focused on the emotional wellbeing of the children.

Ms Wainwright wrote children are "distressed" in a "chaotic, disorderly environment" while staff "do not respond appropriately or swiftly", nor are they "supportive of children's personal development or feelings of security".

Rather than attending to upset children in need of support, the report revealed staff spend their time talking and tidying while their interactions with the children "lack quality and substance".

The watchdog also found the curriculum to be ineffective, leaving "the youngest babies to crawl around aimlessly with no purposeful activities to engage with" while children in need of a quieter environment "become frustrated and upset".

Ms Wainwright said at the time of her visit, staff were preoccupied with Christmas gifts for parents and had a "heavily adult-led" activity list which left "little room for children's individual creativity".

Children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) are particularly impacted by the environment, the report continued, hampering their "ability to prosper" at the nursery.

Meanwhile, organisation was mentioned as another poor area at Roly Poley's Nursery with lunchtime highlighted as a "particularly chaotic" and "extremely poorly managed" period of the day.

The noise during lunch leaves staff "overwhelmed" while children "cry continuously" and "become distressed and bewildered".

Ofsted further said the risk of spreading infection is increased at the nursery due to poorly implement hygiene practices.

The inspector observed staff failing to wash their hands after wiping children's noses and sometimes reusing wet wipes to clean children.

When it came to safeguarding, she said risk assessments and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) background checks on staff were not carried through, further jeopardising children's safety.

For instance, staff use tablets with cameras and internet access in the room with children which is not effectively monitored to ensure appropriate use.

However, Rachelle Pole, the owner of the nursery, disputed the comments and claimed all staff are DBS checked other than cleaning staff and that the tablets in question have adequate control settings on them. 

But the inspector further said while some staff can confidently identify signs of abuse, not all are confident with the procedures they must follow if they have concerns about a member of the team.

"Obvious hazards" also go unnoticed by staff, according to the report, such as hot and exposed radiators, unsecured furniture and long trailing wires which pose a strangulation risk.

Another risk was identified at bedtime where the children are put to sleep on an inappropriate surface with loose bedding, however, Ms Wainwright said the risk is minimised as a member of staff supervises the sleep room.

Finally, Ms Wainwright said weaknesses had already been previously raised to the manager yet "the provider has not taken further action to ensure improvements for children".

Of the positives, she said preschool children "flourish" and enjoy an "ambitious" curriculum in a "well-organised environment" which prepares them for primary school.

Ms Pole said it was "unfortunate" that the nursery had a number of staff sicknesses on the day of the inspection, as well as unwell children, which she admitted did "impact on our ability to meet all the needs of the children".

She added: "However, the inspector was particularly harsh and unreasonable."

Ms Pole said the inspector "chose not to speak with parents" with the exception of one who had "extremely positive" comments about the nursery and staff which was not mentioned in the report.

She continued: "This report is not a true reflection on the quality of our provision on a daily basis.

"Our parents have shared nothing but kind words expressing their happiness with the nursery and have been extremely supportive.

"We immediately addressed most of the actions highlighted in the report and embraced the support of the local authority early years advisory team who are working with us to meet any remaining actions including improving teaching and learning."