A Shirley nursery has been told to make urgent improvements after Ofsted inspectors identified serious concerns over children's wellbeing, teaching standards and behaviour management.

The nursery received the lowest possible judgement across all six inspection areas following an inspection on June 1, 2026.

While safeguarding standards were met, inspectors found that "significant weaknesses in teaching, staff deployment and support for individual learning needs" were limiting children's progress.

According to the report, children do not receive the "high-quality interactions they need to develop their communication and language skills", with staff often focused on managing routines rather than encouraging children to think, talk and share ideas.

Inspectors found children were frequently left waiting for activities to be organised at the start of the day, causing them to become disengaged.

The report also raised concerns about staff interactions with children.

Ofsted found relationships between staff and children were "not always positive" and that staff did not consistently respond to children's needs with "warmth, sensitivity and respect".

Inspectors described some behaviour management strategies as "not appropriate and, at times, humiliating for children".

The report stated that distressed children were told "that their mummy will not be happy with them when they do not sleep" and that staff used "unnecessary physical intervention, including pulling children by the arm to stop their behaviour".

Ofsted concluded that these approaches had "a significant negative impact on children's wellbeing, causing distress rather than helping children feel safe, supported and understood".

Inspectors also highlighted staffing issues, finding children were often cared for by adults who "do not know them well enough to respond appropriately to their individual needs".

Frequent movement of staff between rooms was found to affect children's wellbeing and learning.

The report was critical of the nursery's leadership, stating: "Leaders have not identified or addressed significant weaknesses in staff practice, staff deployment and the day-to-day experiences of children."

Despite the concerns, inspectors identified stronger practice within the pre-school room, where children demonstrated "confidence, independence and positive social skills".

Responding to the report, Natalie Hall, Area Director at Busy Bees, said: "We are deeply disappointed with the overall Ofsted outcome.

"We strive to deliver the best possible early years education and to meet the needs of all families at the nursery.

"We have already started to implement improvements to address key findings, and we are committed to rebuilding the highest-quality standards of education and childcare that our families expect from us."

Most parents who spoke to inspectors were positive about the nursery, although some were unclear about who their child's key person was due to frequent staffing changes.

To view the full inspection report, click here.