Dicky Birds Pre School Nurseries Ltd – Claremont Hall

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement Children arrive happily and are safe. Parents take children into the setting, where they quickly exchange greetings with staff and hand over information relating to their child's care.

Children settle quickly and develop confidence to explore their environment.Parents praise how a new online app enables them to feel involved in their child's learning, as information and photos are regularly shared. Parents also compliment how, when raising a question on the new system, they receive a swift response and communication is 'so much easier'.

Younger children enjoy a range of sensory play activities. They splash, feel and squee...ze cornflour between their fingers and watch it drip back into the tray. Older children go out on daily walks to local places that are of interest to them.

This supports understanding of the world as well as physical development. Children behave well. They understand staff have expectations of them.

For example, they wash their hands and line up in anticipation of what is going to happen next. Children receive praise from staff about the positive choices they make. Some staff do not know the children they are responsible for well enough and how to fully support their next steps in development.

This hinders the potential progress children are able to make.

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

The behaviour of the children is good. Staff encourage turn-taking and being kind to friends.

Staff have created spaces for the children to regulate their own behaviour and be calm. They encourage older children to recognise and manage their feelings by using the 'worry monster'. Children use drawings as well as colour to help describe their feelings.

This supports emotional development.The nursery encourages school readiness by instilling confidence. This is done by encouraging the children to ask questions and to show independence, for example to have the skills to put on shoes and coats without help.

Links with local primary schools help with next steps. Parents are invited in for coffee mornings as an opportunity to socialise and share information in preparation for the move. Children enjoy the leavers' play and graduation ceremony in celebration of their time at nursery.

Staff encourage physical development and teamwork at the leavers' sports day.The nursery is well equipped with open-ended resources to evoke curiosity and exploration. Recently, cupboard doors have been removed to allow children to self-select toys more readily.

However, although play value is high, children are not reaping maximum benefit. Some areas are overfull, meaning children flit from one thing to another and can be easily distracted.Staff use the nursery pet snail as inspiration for an activity about habitats.

Children hold the snail and are involved in looking after it. This, as well as the plants in the garden, reminds them to look after living things. Staff teach children where food comes from by growing fruit and vegetables.

Children explore their senses by touching and smelling fragrant herbs grown in the nursery garden.Management is working hard to address the difficulty in recruiting and retaining permanent staff. COVID-19 and recent events have affected employment.

This has impacted the level of experienced and qualified staff in rooms with the children. Inconsistencies with staffing affect the level of teaching and education delivered in the nursery. Planning and quality interactions with the children are inconsistent.

High noise levels in some rooms impact concentration and participation.The nursery uses partnership working to help achieve better outcomes for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Strategies are agreed and shared to ensure continuity of care.

This gives stability to the child.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff have a range of knowledge relating to safeguarding issues that may affect the children and families attending the setting.

Staff know where to find information on safeguarding if they are unsure. Children have regular trips out in the community. Staff plan for new outings by visiting places of interest, prior to taking children, to complete risk assessments.

To ensure children remain safe when outside of the setting, staff use a walking rope and carry essential items such as first-aid kits and a nursery mobile phone to ensure they can communicate with the nursery if needed.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage, the provider must: Due date support staff to implement and maintain a curriculum that meets the individual learning and development needs of all children.31/08/2023 To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: review the organisation of the environment to maximise the space so that children can easily access play and learning experiences.