Ofsted inspectors find Hoylake nursery to be unclean and unsafe

The inspection identified safety concerns including "extremely hot" radiators and discarded and broken equipment

A nursery where kitchen knives and cleaning products were left within reach of children has had its registration suspended by inspectors.

Mulberry Tree Holiday Club in Hoylake, Wirral, was rated as "inadequate" by Ofsted after an inspection on 4 March.

A report said "children's health was compromised" at the "unclean" nursery and youngsters "played on and ate off carpets that were ingrained with dirt".

The nursery said it was appealing the report, claiming it had inaccuracies.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said the Bertram Drive centre provided full day care for 35 children aged between three and four.

'Chaotic and dangerous'

The report said inspectors found the premises and equipment to be unclean and "rubbish bins in corridors near the children were overflowing".

The inspection also identified safety concerns including "extremely hot" radiators, trailing wires and discarded and broken equipment and found large kitchen knives, sharp vegetable peelers and cleaning products were left in the reach of children.

External water leaks also meant children were "exposed to significant damp" in the building, the report said.

It added that children at the nursery did not "learn how to keep themselves safe", stating that they often ran inside and jumped and climbed on furniture, which made "the environment chaotic and dangerous".

It also said children did not have privacy for personal care and both leaders and staff failed to understand the fire risk assessment.

However, inspectors found that the children had positive relationships with their key person at the nursery and had made adequate progress in communication, while staff had adequate knowledge and understanding of safeguarding.

The nursery's management said they would appeal the report over what they said were "a number of factual inaccuracies and false statements within it".

They said they would "rectify the issue as soon as possible", adding that they would not "let this misjudgement defeat us".

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