Ashfield Plaza Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children demonstrate secure attachments with staff. They confidently leave parents at the door and settle quickly. Children demonstrate positive attitudes to learning and eagerly join in with planned activities.

For example, pre-school children learn how to keep their teeth clean. They draw spots on pictures of teeth and practise brushing them off. Children develop social skills as they talk with each other about when they have visited a dentist.

Staff have high expectations of children's behaviour. Children learn to be kind and share resources with others during play. They are developing skills they need in preparatio...n for school.

For example, children are confident to do things for themselves. They make choices about their play, fetch their own coats and serve themselves at mealtimes.Children are developing their physical skills.

Babies enjoy rocking back and forth on the seesaw. Toddlers walk across a balance beam as staff provide words of encouragement. They develop confidence as they safely negotiate walking over bumps and humps.

Pre-school children excitedly join a 'stay active' session. They giggle as they stomp around the room pretending to be elephants. Staff extend this by placing cones on the floor.

Children pretend the cones are hot lava and their footballs are dogs. Staff challenge them to keep their dogs out of danger. Children learn control as the gently kick their football around the cones.

When they lose their ball, they keep trying. Children show pride when they succeed.

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

Staff have created a 'communication-friendly space' in each room.

This space allows children to talk with each other without adult interaction. For example, pre-school children take their dolls into this space. They pretend their dolls are babies and talk with each other about how they are looking after them.

This helps children become confident talkers as they practise their conversational skills and share ideas.Staff teach children what is expected of them during daily routines and activities. They are good role models who provide consistent guidance to children.

For example, when toddlers chase each other around the room, staff ask them to stop and explain they will fall over toys and hurt themselves. This helps children understand how to play safely.Staff know the children well.

They know what they want children to learn next and they understand how to build on what children already know and can do. For example, staff ask children thought-provoking questions to extend their learning. However, on occasion, staff quickly provide the answer themselves.

This means children do not get the chance to think and respond.Staff support children to develop their small-muscle skills. They encourage older babies to carefully build a tower with tunnels.

Toddlers eagerly copy staff by stretching and squeezing dough to create a person with wobbly eyes. Pre-school children show good control as they use pencils to colour pictures of animals. Staff support them to write their names.

Children confidently draw circles and lines, and staff praise them for trying. This supports early writing skills.Overall, daily routines are well organised and support children to learn.

However, on occasion, children's learning is interrupted when the routine changes unexpectedly. For example, babies eagerly sit down to glue and stick. They are then told by staff that they are going outside.

Babies look confused at what they should do next. Additionally, toddler story time is interrupted by high noise levels. This is caused by staff getting the room ready for lunchtime.

This disrupts children's learning and their ability to fully engage in an activity.The nursery provides healthy meals and snacks for the children. Staff encourage children to wash their hands before meals and provide access to fresh drinking water.

They use mealtimes to help children understand the benefits of eating well.Managers and staff strive to provide an inclusive environment. To this end, each room has an inclusion area.

Parents and children bring in special items to share. For example, children have recently learned about a prayer mat from one child's home. Additionally, children are helped to understand about other children at the nursery who need special equipment.

This supports children to understand that everyone is different.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff have a secure knowledge of the possible signs that a child may be at risk of harm, and know what procedures to follow if they have concerns.

They know what signs may suggest that a child is being exposed to extreme views or behaviour. Staff know the correct procedure to follow should there be concerns about the conduct of a colleague. The manager carries out safer recruitment checks to ensure the ongoing suitability of staff working with children.

The setting is secure and routinely checked to ensure the safety of children. Children are well supervised at all times.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nensure changes to daily routines do not disrupt children's learning nensure staff always give children enough time to process their thoughts and express their ideas when responding to questions.

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