Aj’s Little Cherubs Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement Overall, children settle well and are happy to attend this nursery. They leave their parents at the door and staff welcome them warmly. Children develop sound physical skills.

They enjoy building with construction pieces and fix train tracks together. Early writing skills are beginning to emerge as children make marks with pens, pencils and paint. Children play imaginatively with dolls and kitchen resources.

At times, there are not enough resources or experiences to motivate and engage children aged over two years. Teaching for these children is not good enough. For example, pre-school children get excited when staff sugg...est they make dough.

Children crowd around the activity and lose interest as they wait for a turn. This impacts on children's behaviour as they run around the room or snatch resources from their friends.Teaching is better for children aged under two years.

The youngest children benefit from a range of experiences to explore. They access books freely from a cosy book corner. Staff talk slowly and simply, modelling new words and language.

As a result, babies and young children are beginning to babble and say first words. They develop strong physical skills as they crawl and build up to walking and jumping.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

The manager has a sound understanding of the curriculum she wants staff to implement.

She recognises that staff need to focus on teaching that supports and extends children's learning. The manager identifies that children need most support with their emotional and communication and language development.Staff benefit from some supervision and support from the manager.

They complete training and engage in discussions at staff meetings to enhance their skills. This has led to some improvement since the last inspection. However, it has not led to a sufficient improvement in the overall quality of the provision.

This is because, although staff working with babies and younger children demonstrate good teaching skills, practice with older children is not consistently good.Staff know children well. They know what children already know and can do and what they need to learn next.

Some teaching focuses on children's interests and their next steps in learning.Staff plan activities for babies and younger children well. They arrange the environment and resources which motivate children to play.

Children enjoy using their hands and heart shapes to make paint print pictures. As a result, younger children make good progress.Activities are not planned as well for older children.

For example, staff plan an activity for children to make Mother's Day cards to help children develop their ideas and choose materials. However, there are few materials for children to choose from and pre-printed pictures limits children's creativity. Older children do not make the progress of which they are capable.

Staff provide appropriate support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Children benefit from targeted plans and one-to-one support to help them make progress from their starting points.Staff working with children aged over two years do not manage children's behaviour well.

Although there are simple nursery rules in place, staff do not consistently reinforce these expectations with children. For example, at times children run around the room. Sometimes, staff remind children to use walking feet but at other times they ignore it.

At times, children snatch toys from their friends. Staff say, 'No thank you' without explaining why the behaviour is not acceptable. As a result, children do not learn what is expected of them.

Children begin to understand about healthy lifestyles throughout routine times of day. For example, they enjoy freshly cooked meals and independently wash their hands before mealtimes. They enjoy time in the garden for fresh air and exercise.

Children take responsibility for clearing their plates away when they have finished eating. They acquire some skills that help to prepare them when they move to school.Parents say that their children are happy and settled at the nursery.

Staff use some methods of communication. For example, they complete a daily communication book and speak to parents daily. However, the care and learning information staff provide is not always detailed or accurate enough to fully inform parents.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager and staff are fully aware of their duty to protect children in their care. They can recognise the signs and symptoms of abuse and understand wider safeguarding matters.

Staff are fully aware of the action they must take if they are concerned about the conduct of leaders or another staff member. Staff undertake daily risk assessments to ensure the environment and resources are safe for children. They complete ongoing risk assessment throughout the day and identify and remove any hazards or risks immediately.

The manager implements sound recruitment and vetting procedures to ensure all staff are deemed suitable.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage and Childcare Register the provider must: Due date ensure staff are consistent in their approach to addressing children's behaviour and helping children to learn what is expected of them 02/05/2023 raise the quality of teaching to a consistently good level 02/05/2023 provide children with a sufficient range of interesting and challenging experiences that consistently engage children to help them to make at least good progress.02/05/2023 To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: develop parent partnerships to increase the information they receive about their child's care and learning.

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