EXCLUSIVE: Golders Green Synagogue nursery closed amid ‘safeguarding’ concerns

A Jewish nursery has been indefinitely shutdown by education watchdogs amid safeguarding concerns.

The United Synagogue has confirmed that Little Goldies nursery in Golders Green synagogue was closed by Ofsted on 13 January – the full reasons for which remain unknown.

Little Goldies – which employs five members of staff – will remain closed until the Ofsted investigation has concluded.

Steven Wilson, chief executive of the United Synagogue, told Jewish News: “Safeguarding is of the utmost importance to the United Synagogue in all of its settings. Ofsted has suspended Little Goldies’ Ofsted registration and, as a result, the nursery has been closed since 13 January.

“The United Synagogue is working closely with the lay leadership of Golders Green Synagogue and the relevant authorities and we know the closure has caused significant disruption to Little Goldies families for which we are extremely sorry. Given there is an ongoing investigation we cannot comment any further at this stage.”

A Barnet Council spokesperson said: “We followed our procedures and contacted the police after a series of concerns about Little Goldies Nursery were reported to us.

“They are now being investigated and the nursery has been suspended until the investigation is concluded, which is likely to be for a period of not less than six weeks. We are working closely with our partners as the investigation continues.”

Little Goldies nursery which, according to the website, “offers a secure, caring and stimulating environment” for Jewish children was ranked “good” by Ofsted in February 2020.

A spokesperson for Ofsted has said: “We can confirm that we inspected the nursery on 10 January following a risk assessment. We have since suspended the nursery’s registration and are working closely with other agencies’.

Jewish News understands that the safeguarding concerns are not of a physical or sexual nature. Jewish News has asked Ofsted for comment.