Health professionals had stated the child required “required increased and close supervision” but they were left on their own

A children’s home where a vulnerable child attempted to harm themselves has been rated inadequate. “Serious and widespread failures” were highlighted after an OFSTED inspection at Clare Lodge Secure Children’s Home in Peterborough.

OFSTED inspected the children’s home over February 10 and 11 and a report was published on Tuesday, March 18. The report said children often “do not feel valued or respected” by staff.

In one instance, a vulnerable child with a history of self-harm was left alone in a lounge area for an extended period of time, almost entirely out of view of CCTV. The child became unresponsive after tying a ligature around their neck, according to the OFSTED report.

After staff checked on the child, emergency services were called to the home and the child was taken to hospital. The centre manager was aware of the incident as he had walked past the room on two occasions but did not take any action. The child had a safety plan in place and health professionals had said she “required increased and close supervision”.

Not all the children have clear strategies to help them in their risk assessment reports to help guide staff in “effectively supporting and safeguarding” them, according to the report.

The report added: “Placing social workers said that they are not always informed about incidents or concerns about the children promptly. They say that incident reports that are sent to them are not always sufficiently detailed and leave them having to contact the home for further information and clarifications. Some family members also shared concerns about the lack of communication from staff.”

The home has had three different centre managers since February 2025. The report stated that the centre managers have failed to “develop a good-quality service” for its children and have “not established effective and collaborative working relationships” with the heads of departments.

Councillor Katy Cole, PCC Cabinet member for Children’s Services, said: “We acknowledge receipt of the report and accept responsibility for the concerns raised regarding Clare Lodge. We are taking Ofsted’s feedback extremely seriously, and steps are already being taken to make the necessary improvements to the facility.

“As Cabinet Member, I want to emphasise that we are all corporate parents and I take that responsibility seriously. We remain dedicated to further developing Clare Lodge and delivering a high standard of care for the vulnerable young girls who reside there, ensuring they are supported, protected, and given a voice.

“I am committed to ensuring that every child in this city is treated with the respect and care that I would want for my own children.”

The headteacher said it’s ‘incredible’ to receive the rating

A SEND school where children are “flourishing” has been rated outstanding for a fifth year in a row. Gretton School in Manor Farm Road, Girton, underwent a two-day Ofsted inspection from February 10 until February 12.

There are 175 pupils that attend the school, but it can also accommodate up to 12 residential pupils. At the time of inspection, there were six residential pupils and inspectors spoke to all these children.

Ofsted rated the school outstanding in all three areas it assessed, which were: overall experiences and progress of children and young people; how well children and young people are helped and protected; and the effectiveness of leaders and managers.

Inspectors said the school provided “highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good”, and the school’s actions contribute to “significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people”.

Headteacher Beth Elkins said that outstanding outcomes “don’t happen by accident or good fortune”. She added: “They happen because a team of people take it upon themselves to understand the importance of a role, unite in how that role is carried out and do the job to the best of their ability, with learners at the centre.

“Outstanding doesn’t mean perfect. It means better than that – it means that you never stop trying to do, and be, better for the learners that sit at the heart of the provision. This was captured beautifully by one of the external contacts that the Inspectors contacted, who said: ‘All practitioners want to do better, they are engaged and want autistic children to have their rights met.’ What an incredible thing!”

Inspectors said staff “patiently preserve with children”, and that they were “knowledgeable, empathetic and committed to their roles”. The report added: “Extensive efforts are made to ensure that children are involved and consulted about their care.

“Again, relational practice is at the heart of this endeavour. Children are taught to navigate relationships and develop the skills needed to repair these when they become strained. This has had a profound influence on children’s relationships, both in and out of school.”

Once children move on from the residence, the report said staff maintain contact with their families. Inspectors said this showed the staff “demonstrate their interest and care in the children’s lives”.

Safeguarding was praised by inspectors, as the report stated the designated safeguard lead made “credible efforts to demystify the broad concept of safeguarding”. When staff are concerned about a child’s behaviour or mental health, the concern is “approached sensitively and collaboratively”, as said in the report.

The report added: “Staff are perceptive and effective at supporting children to process a plethora of information that the modern world exposes them to, particularly online.

“In doing so, children receive a balanced view and learn how to appropriately debate topical issues in the world.” Leaders of the school were also said to be “consistently striving to improve through seeking and funding expert bodies to critically evaluate practice in school”.

The nursey works closely with parents to keep them updated on their child’s development.

A nursery in Cambridgeshire has been rated strong in all of the categories assessed by OFSTED. The Day Nursery in Peterborough has been praised for the “very good progress” children make during their time there.

The Day Nursery was inspected by the regulator on Wednesday, January 14, with the positive report published on Monday, March 2. The report said: “Teaching is highly effective across all rooms of the nursery. Staff know the children extremely well. They take the time to help them settle and build loving, trusting relationships from the start. Staff working with babies are highly skilled and trained.”

It continued: “They understand baby development, including the importance of developing and strengthening children’s large and small muscles. They give them space to crawl, climb safely and provide equipment to help them pull themselves up to standing. Staff maintain eye-contact when talking to babies and repeat words to begin building their vocabulary.”

Jade Smith, the Early Years Manager, said: “I would just like to say how incredibly proud I am of our team, we have previously been rated outstanding three times and have remained committed to delivering the highest standards achievable.

“A special mention also needs to go to our nursery owner Lynne Blyth who dedicates her time fighting for the best outcomes for all local nurseries by being involved in local and national Early Years groups and forums.”

As well as developing a good relationship with the children, the report said staff also help them to “develop a secure knowledge of mathematical concepts” by using real life examples and activities. The report added that children are able to follow instructions “very well” and show ‘impressive’ levels of concentration and focus.

Mealtimes are also used to further children’s development with children from the age of two years old serving their own food, according to regulators. The children “highly benefit” from routines at the nursery, including time outdoors and yoga, music, and movement sessions.

On the leadership and governance of the nursery, the report detailed: “Leaders appreciate and value their staff. They monitor practice to help nurture and guide staff’s personal development. Regular supervision sessions consider staff’s wellbeing and identify professional training opportunities.

“Leaders are passionate about continuing professional development opportunities for all staff using tailor-made, customised and bespoke training. This means staff can continually deliver high-quality teaching experiences and constantly build their skills.”

The staff at the Day Nursery also build partnerships with the children’s parents and “gather the essential information about their child to help them settle”, the report said. Many parents have “extremely positively” commented on the information they receive about their children’s daily activities.

In their previous Ofsted inspection in 2020, they received an overall rating of ‘good’

A pre-school just over the Cambridgeshire border in Hertfordshire has been told it ‘needs attention’ by Ofsted. After dropping from an overall ‘good’ rating in their previous inspection, staff members at Ladybird Playgroup & Pre-school in Thriplow said that they “recognise some areas need enhancing” and are “already taking action”.

The report, which was published on Monday, March 2, said that some children make “varied progress through the curriculum due to inconsistencies in teaching”.

The report also states: “Children are independent individuals and thrive in carrying out appropriate responsibilities, such as taking turns to be the helper of the day.”

The pre-school was judged ‘needs attention’ for five categories assessed: achievement, behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines, curriculum and teaching, inclusion, and leadership and governance.

The safeguarding standards were met and children’s welfare and wellbeing was graded at ‘expected standard’.

Ofsted awarded a rating of overall ‘good’ in their previous inspection in 2020.

The report said: “Older children are learning to navigate their emotions. However, when older children display unkind behaviour, such as shouting at friends in frustration or throwing resources, staff tell them to stop but do not always help them to understand their own and others’ feelings.”

As a result, the inspection found that “staff do not fully support children to develop the skills needed to regulate their behaviour”.

The report continued: “Leaders recognise that staff need to strengthen their skills to help children manage their emotions but have not yet taken effective action to do so.”

A spokesperson for Ladybird Playgroup and Pre-school in Thriplow said: “We were one of the first settings assessed under Ofsted’s new framework. We’re pleased the inspection recognised the good work we are doing, particularly around safeguarding and children’s wellbeing.

“We recognise some areas need enhancing and we are already taking action. The safety and wellbeing of the children in our care remains our top priority.”

Ofsted praised the staff for working well as a team, and encouraging children to develop a love of books. The report recognises that children feel “relaxed, safe and secure”, and that they “build secure relationships with their key person and seek them out for reassurance when needed”.

Ofsted carried out an ‘unannounced’ inspection at the nursery in January

A nursery has suddenly closed after Ofsted raised concerns about children potentially being at “risk of harm”. Ofsted carried out an inspection at the Smarties Pre-School and After School Club in Hay Street, Steeple Morden, on January 15.

Following the inspection, Ofsted suspended the nursery’s registration, meaning it has temporarily stopped running. Inspectors said they believed children could be at risk of harm in the nursery.

An Ofsted spokesperson said: “We don’t comment on individual providers. But, I can confirm that we suspended this pre-school’s registration, which is our standard procedure when we have reason to believe children are potentially at risk of harm.”

A Smarties spokesperson confirmed an “unannounced” inspection was carried out in January. The spokesperson added: “We can confirm that the registration of Smarties Pre-School and After-School Club (Smarties) was suspended by Ofsted on January 16, following an unannounced inspection on January 15.

“We fully support Ofsted’s role in ensuring that providers maintain robust safeguarding arrangements and eliminate any risk of harm to children. Following the inspection, Ofsted identified areas where safeguarding arrangements required strengthening.

“The committee is working closely with the local authority to address these matters and to complete the necessary actions as quickly and thoroughly as possible.”

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