A PLAYGROUP has been closed down after staff failed to notice a three-year-old girl had escaped by climbing a three-foot fence.

Ofsted has temporarily closed Milton Mount playgroup in Pound Hill, Crawley, after the youngster was found walking around Worth Park, which backs onto the playgroup, by members of the public on Tuesday.

Staff at the playgroup did not notice the girl was gone until her grandmother came to collect her. Police brought back the girl back to the playgroup at about the same time.

Ofsted, which rated the playgroup as ‘good’ during its last inspection in 2013, said the matter was being looked into.

A spokeswoman said: “I can confirm the registration has been suspended at Milton Mount Playgroup. We cannot comment any further at this stage.”

Parents of other children at Milton Mount said on Facebook that they had taken their children out of the group permanently following the news.

Another mother, who asked not to be named, said she had raised concerns about the group “a few years ago”.

She said: “I took my children out of there a few years ago as I wasn’t happy at all with the way they run things but I think this needs to be investigated by Ofsted.”

Six members of staff are listed on Milton Mount’s website. One page says the playgroup ensures that staff are “at the forefront of child care knowledge and practice”.

A spokesman for Sussex Police said: “Police were called at 2.50pm on Tuesday by a woman who had found a three-year-old girl wandering around in Milton Mount, Pound Hill, Crawley.

“Officers attended and went to Milton Mount Playgroup, which was very close-by and explained that a child had been found on her own nearby. “The playgroup staff then checked and realised the girl was missing.

“The girl was brought back to the playgroup and reunited with her grandmother who had arrived to collect her. She was not hurt. The staff and the girl were spoken to and she told police she climbed over a 3ft fence to get out. The incident has been recorded.”