A nursery in Rochdale has been given an inadequate rating by Ofsted after several safety concerns were identified.
While the quality of education and the behaviour of the children may have been praised following a recent inspection, education watchdog Ofsted did however find that youngsters at Small World Nurseries – which is based at Tudor House on Manchester Road in Castleton – were found to be at risk of potential harm after a number of ineffective risk assessments were carried out.
Children were said to be “happy and engaged”, according to the Ofsted report, and it was also noted that they had formed “solid, affectionate bonds” with the staff that cared for them.
However, inspectors ended up rating the nursery as ‘inadequate’ overall, partly due to shortcomings in leadership and management, and mainly because policies and procedures around risk assessment and safeguarding were “not well implemented” and therefore exposed children to “potential hazards”.
The report said children were left vulnerable to avoidable injuries, as conditions at the nursery were not always suitable and safe, with “blocked fire exists, uneven surfaces, and children running with hot liquids” observed.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Although the environment is risk-assessed daily, this is not effective,” the report added.
Children at Small World Nurseries in Castleton were found at risk of potential harm after a number of ineffective risk assessments were carried out / Credit: Google Maps
The watchdog also said: “Children are given hot soup to drink outdoors [but] they are not given appropriate direction on how to drink this safely which means they run around on wet, slippery ground carrying hot soup, posing a risk to themselves and others.”
ADVERTISEMENT
The report referenced the fact children would “fall repeatedly” due to the slippery and uneven outdoor area at the nursery.
The nursery was also found to be failing to identify other practices that pose a risk to children, including providing phones for staff to use to take photos of the children without considering the risk posed by devices with “unfiltered internet access”, and Ofsted criticised the management team for being “not robust enough to recognise and rectify these concerns”.
As mentioned though, it’s not all doom and gloom for Small World Nurseries, as it was praised for its relationship with parents, who had described staff as “wonderful”, and were said to “feel reassured when their children leave the setting smiling and happy each day”.
ADVERTISEMENT
Inspectors noted that “all children make good progress”.
Featured Image – Google Maps
News
Hundreds of staff at four Greater Manchester hospitals to strike AGAIN next week
Emily Sergeant
Another round of strikes has been called at a handful of major Greater Manchester hospitals.
Amid ongoing disputes following the first set of strikes at the end of last month, it has now been announced that more than 350 Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust (NCA) employees – including nurses, clinical support workers and housekeepers – who are members of the union UNISON will once again walk out for three days next week.
According to the union, the dispute centres on the NCA’s use of an outside agency called NHS Professionals (NHSP) to manage overtime.
When covering staff shortages, workers are entitled to time-and-a-half pay – however in some cases, staff earn less than they would on a normal shift, and some have even been missing out on more than £80 per shift, the union added.
Operating theatre staff were previously on picket lines in June, and although an option to resolve the row was initially tabled by NCA bosses, this has now fallen through.
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week / Credit: Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
This means that staff at Salford Royal Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, and Fairfield Hospital in Bury are walking out next week on Monday 14, Tuesday 15, and Thursday 17 September.
The union’s North West regional organiser, Kevin Dolan, said the trust had given ‘no indication’ that it’s willing to re-enter negotiations, adding that operating theatre services were ‘chronically under-staffed’ and staff were choosing to work extra shifts to cover shortages.
Ahead of the August strikes, the trust declared a critical incident to help it secure extra support and keep urgent surgery running, while also announcing that some procedures would have to be postponed.
Understandably, some disruption is expected at each of the hospitals on strike days.
But Gertie Nic Philib, who is the chief people and strategy officer at the Northern Care Alliance, said that the trust will do ‘everything we can to minimise the impact on patients’ and ‘maintain high standards of care and quality at all times.’
“We also have contingency plans in place for emergency situations,” they concluded.
Featured Image – Pxhere
News
Stockport man jailed for life after kidnapping and sexually assaulting teenage girl
Emily Sergeant
A Stockport man has been sentenced to life in prison after kidnapping and sexually assaulting a teenage girl on her way home from the library.
Paul Sharpe has been sentenced to life imprisonment with an eight-year minimum term in prison after being convicted of a number of offences when subjected a teenage girl to what police called a ‘terrifying ordeal’ that lasted several hours back in May 2026.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) confirmed that the victim had been studying at Sale Library before beginning her journey home with friends at around 5:50pm and contacting her parents at 6:10pm to let them know she was on her way.
Twenty minutes later, she spoke to her boyfriend on the phone and said she was approximately five minutes away from home, but that her phone battery was about to die.
This was the last contact received from the victim that evening.
While walking along Bradgate Road in Altrincham, the victim noticed a grey Ford parked nearby and a man wearing a high-visibility jacket pressing doorbells in the area.
As she walked past, Sharpe approached her from behind, placed her in a headlock and threatened to stab her if she did not get into his vehicle.
Concerned that their daughter had not returned home, the victim’s family contacted police at 9:22pm to report her missing, and officers immediately launched an investigation to locate her.
Over the next several hours, the victim was subjected to and placed in a number of terrifying situations.
Sharpe drove the victim to several locations across Greater Manchester and Cheshire, before police located and arrested him at around 3:40am on 19 May 2026.
Following his arrested, 56-year-old Sharpe was convicted of kidnap, committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence, sexual assault, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, threats with a bladed article, and administering a noxious substance with intent to injure, annoy or aggrieve.
“This was a terrifying ordeal for a young girl who was simply making her way home,” explained Detective Inspector Karl Perry, from GMP’s Criminal Investigation Department.
“Sharpe targeted a vulnerable victim, subjected her to hours of fear and intimidation, and went on to sexually assault her.
“The victim has shown immense courage throughout the investigation and court proceedings. Through her bravery and actions, she no doubt made it harder for Sharpe to carry out whatever acts he had planned.”
Emily Sergeant -
23rd March 2022 
