A playgroup in Swindon has been told by Ofsted it must take action after multiple concerns were raised about the group.

Tick Tock Play Group, based at Hall Close in Wroughton, caters for up to 60 children aged under five and in October 2023 was rated as ‘Requires Improvement’ in all areas by Ofsted inspectors.

It was the only nursery or preschool in Swindon to have received this rating in the last two years.

Just three months later, further concerns were raised to Ofsted and the group has been told it must now take action.

Inspectors visiting the setting in October reported that “staff working with younger children need more monitoring, coaching and training,” and “staff working with babies and younger children do not support them to learn to manage their own feelings and behaviours”.

Despite an overall negative report, inspectors did pick out the strong bonds between older children and staff and stated that “the manager has not been in post long enough to drive all of the required improvements that she has identified”.

Swindon Advertiser: Tick Tock Play Group staff say they are making necessary improvements following concerns.Tick Tock Play Group staff say they are making necessary improvements following concerns. (Image: Dave Cox)

All early years providers must meet the legal requirements in the 'Statutory framework for the early years foundation stage' in order to operate as a childcare setting.

On November 29, 2023, Ofsted was contacted with concerns that the Wroughton play group was not meeting some of these requirements, and carried out two regulatory phone calls in December and January.

“We found the provider was not meeting some of the requirements. We have issued actions for the provider to take and the provider will be able to give parents further information about this,” said a spokesperson for Ofsted.

“Action must be taken by February 16, 2024, to ensure that procedures for managing any allegations that may be made against a member of staff are understood and followed by leaders and management.

“We will monitor the provider’s response to ensure the actions are successfully completed.”

After receiving the letter of compliance action from Ofsted dated January 23, 2024, Tick Tock Play Group has been putting measures in place to improve its setting.

"Since the OFSTED inspection, our new management team alongside our hard-working and dedicated early years practitioners have been working hard to make improvements in the identified areas," said a spokesperson for the group.

"This has included working closely with the EY team from Swindon Borough Council who are supporting us.

“A recent visit from one of the Swindon Early Years Consultants was very positive and we were pleased with the feedback we received about some of the changes we have introduced.”