Regulation 21 in Kilkenny
Equipment and Materials: 3 non-compliance(s) in the latest reports we read.
An inspection records what inspectors saw on one day; services respond with corrective actions — how to read this.
9 June 2026
Little Mischief Day Nursery & Montessori Piltown, Piltown · Regulation 21 — Equipment and materials
- While it is acknowledged that the furniture, play and work equipment in the Wobbler room and Preschool 1 room was adequate and suitable, the Toddler rooms was sparsely furnished and had little equipment and toys for the children. This room had no areas of interest and toys were stored on shelving which was too high for this age of children to access easily
Provider's corrective action:
- The registered provider stated that action was taken to correct this non -compliance. The rooms were defined with extra furniture and additional equipment. The toys are now accessible to the children. They will ensure that area is kept defined and add to the materials and equipment available
9 January 2026
Lisdowney Montessori Play & Learn, Lisdowney · Regulation 21 — Equipment and materials
- While it is acknowledged that there was suitable furniture, play equipment and materials in the service, there was more than what was required to provide a quality play environment for the children. It was difficult to identify the interest areas in the large classroom as play equipment and shelves of toys fully lined the walls of the classroom, with no clear arrangement system. Children were observed to wander from one resource to the next with no area providing a clear purpose. Dolls houses sat side by side with construction equipment and the art area was inaccessible due to shelving in front of it. Similarly, the children’s beautifully designed family wall was blocked by more shelving preventing them from accessing it to view it. It is acknowledged that in discussion with the staff present, that a lot of donations are made to the service in good faith, which leads to the accumulation of excessive play materials and resources. The registered provider has submitted the following response
Provider's corrective action:
- The staff team has been working on creating more clearly defined interest areas and will continue this work. The family wall has been relocated to an area where children can freely access it and sit to observe their families. The service also plans to declutter previous donations by passing items on to charitable organisations. A submission has been made to Better Start QDS Team and will further support the service in improving the room layout. Engaging with the national early years quality development team will prevent this non-compliance from occurring in the future. The service plans not to accept as many donations going forward and but will review donations on a case-by-case basis
13 August 2025
Marbles Creche, Kilkenny · Regulation 21 — Equipment and materials
- The toys and equipment in the outdoor area needed to be renewed and updated to provide a stimulating environment for the children. The inspector noted there was a lack of areas of interest where children could develop their gross motor and fine motor development. The limited number of ride on toys were worn and needed to be replaced
Provider's corrective action:
- The outdoor area has been updated since the inspection. The worn ride on toys have been removed and new toys and areas of interest have been added to the area