STAFF at a nursery where care inspectors had to step in to feed children during a visit failed to notice a child asleep at the lunch table during a follow-up inspection.

In a damning report on the follow-up check on Pear Tree Nursery on Haddington’s West Road, inspectors said that serious concerns about the nutritional welfare of youngsters remained after they witnessed children going hungry and one falling asleep at the table during mealtime.

And they revealed that inspectors also recorded temperatures of 24 degrees in an "overcrowded" sleeping room which had no ventilation.

Their report said: “Too many children were in the sleep room, resulting in it feeling very cramped and staff had to step on and over beds to reach children.

“The radiator was on and there was no ventilation in this room. We checked and the temperature was 24 degrees. This had significant potential for children to overheat.

“Whilst staff told us they physically checked sleeping children, there was no clear system in place for staff to do this at regular intervals.”

READ MORE: Inspectors had to feed hungry children at county nursery

Bright Stars Nursery Group, owners of the nursery, said that they were disappointed with the inspectors' findings and said they had brought experienced staff from their other three East Lothian nurseries into West Road to help.

They said: “Since we acquired the nursery last June, we have embarked on a major programme of investment in facilities, staff training and development.

“We are pleased the inspectors recognised some of the improvements that have taken place since the previous inspection. We have transferred some experienced staff from our nearby nurseries to work with our newly recruited team members, but it takes time for our improvements to become fully embedded.

“We have found a new experienced catering supplier, Apetito, which specialises in providing nutritionally balanced meals for nursery-aged children, and will start working with us at the beginning of February.”

The inspection came two months after care inspectors visited the private nursery in October, giving it the lowest possible grade of just one (unsatisfactory) for its care.

That inspection took place just days after it was announced that Pear Tree West Road – along with its sister branches on Haddington’s Church Street and Meadowpark, and Pumpkin Patch Nursery in North Berwick – was losing funding for 1,140 hours of early learning and childcare.

READ MORE: Owners 'stunned and dismayed' as four nurseries to lose funding for 1,140 hours

That came after East Lothian Council stated its belief that the nurseries – which are owned by Bright Stars Nursery Group Ltd, which acquired all four nurseries that summer – had “not been meeting the national standards of early learning and childcare as set by the Scottish Government”.

Concerns included allegedly “incorrect or misleading” communications from Bright Stars, as well as the withdrawal of places for two children with additional support needs, which is being investigated by the Care Inspectorate.

The nurseries lost their funding in early October, resulting in many parents finding alternative nurseries for their children.

READ MORE: Investigation into nursery after ASN children’s places withdrawn

At the time of the October inspection, inspectors said that they had to step in to ensure children were fed after a new meal proved unpopular with youngsters who were left hungry.

The nursery was ordered to ensure that “children continue to be offered sufficient food and they are offered enough drinking water to keep them hydrated” as one of a series of requirements which were to be in place by November 18.

However, the unannounced visit on December 5 left inspectors with serious concerns and the requirement has been extended until later this month.

In their inspection report, they said: “We continued to have serious concerns that staff were not ensuring that children’s nutritional needs were adequately met.

“Staff did not notice that children did not eat their lunch and they were put to bed without being offered an alternative. 

“Staff also did not notice that a child had fallen asleep at the lunch table. This concerned us that eating children were not being supervised closely enough.”

'Lack of opportunities'

As well as concerns about the temperature in the sleeping room, inspectors criticised the nursery for deploying a staff member to the baby room who the tots were not familiar with.

They said: “This staff member had not worked in the baby room often enough to have formed close attachments. 

“This meant babies were waking up to staff who they may not be familiar with and had the potential to cause some distress.”

Issues of staffing continued to be a concern, with inspectors reporting "ineffective decision-making" over deployment of staff.

They said: “At times, children were being cared for by unskilled staff who were not working within the minimum ratios. This was putting staff and children at risk.”

And they said that earlier concerns about staff not being experienced enough to take the children on trips out of the nursery remained.

They said: “There continued to be a lack of opportunities for children to go outwith the nursery.

"Staff had made a display of children talking about the risk when out in the local community. 

“However, staff had not been trained on keeping children safe outwith the nursery. Pushchairs had not been delivered. This meant that children continued to be unable to benefit and reach their full potential from being outdoors and outwith the nursery in the local community.”

'Too busy'

Inspectors noted that some concerns about the environment had been addressed, with children no longer able to access staples, a door latch which risked catching their fingers being moved, and safety screen covering glass.

However, they found that while an outdoor sandpit and kitchen had been brought into the garden for children, it could not be used because no sand had been bought to fill it.

And they criticised the information given to parents about how their children’s day had been spent saying staff were "too busy" to monitor youngsters all the time.

They said: “We observed staff to be busy on other tasks and unable to consistently engage with and observe children. 

“This meant they were unable to share information in a meaningful way with parents about their child’s day.”

Only one of nine requirements imposed on the nursery following October’s inspection had been met, with five not met in time and deadlines extended, and a further three still within the time limit to be addressed.

Inspectors said that they would continue unannounced visits to the nursery to assess improvements.