A PRE-SCHOOL has closed after 20 years following a poor Ofsted visit which found children were ‘left to wander’.

Busy Bodies Pre-School, in Poole Road in Branksome, has been marked as closed on Ofsted’s website, having been registered since 1994.

The closure follows a recent visit by the watchdog in July, with a report published in August, which rated the centre as requires improvement.

It was previously rated good in 2019 with inspectors praising staff on their skills and training.

However, the most recent report said: “Leaders know what they want children to learn.

“However, they do not ensure that staff understand how to deliver a curriculum that successfully meets the needs of all children.

“Staff do not effectively build on what children already know and can do, or help them as well as they could, so children learn what they need next.”

Inspectors found that staff provide some activities that children enjoy but that interactions are limited and do not “support, challenge or extend children's learning further”.

“For example, older children push small cars down the guttering to see how fast they go. Although at times staff stand with them, they do not engage with children.

“Children often wander with little direction from staff.”

The report said that the pre-school's committee did not have an “effective oversight” and understanding of its roles and responsibilities.  

“It does not provide leaders and staff with the level of support they need to provide children with consistent and positive routines and learning opportunities.”

It added that children struggled to understand and develop an awareness of expectations, with staff failing to embed transitions between activities to keep them engaged.

“For example, staff bring children in from outside halfway through the older children's story time, and children's learning is interrupted.”

To improve, the pre-school was told to deliver an ambitious curriculum, ensure the committee understands its roles and ensure children understand what is expected of them. 

Although, the report praised staff for building positive relationships with parents.

"Communication with parents is regular and staff keep them well informed of children's care needs and activities their children have enjoyed."