Little Pumpkins Nursery Ltd

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is inadequate

Children's safety and well-being are compromised at this nursery.

Leaders consistently fail to meet statutory adult-to-child ratio requirements. As a result, staff cannot always supervise children effectively and the environment becomes chaotic. For instance, children climb on the furniture and argue with their peers.

This has a particular impact on children who need additional support with their learning to interact and engage. Although staff try to address children's behaviour as incidents arise, they are not able to due to the lack of staff.Leaders have failed to ensure that they met the required child-to-staf...f ratio to meet statutory qualification requirements.

Recently appointed staff take on key-person responsibilities without fully understanding the role. This is challenging for staff who lack the qualification and experience required to meet children's needs. Staff cannot effectively monitor children to help them manage their behaviour and support them to have a positive attitude to their learning.

That said, staff try their best in difficult circumstances. They treat children with kindness and compassion. Staff play alongside children, encourage conversation and praise their efforts.

Children are confident and independent. They enjoy climbing and exploring in the outside space. This helps to develop their physical skills.

The manager does not ensure that all children receive high-quality learning opportunities. Consequently, staff are not able to provide an ambitious curriculum. When staff do plan activities based on children's individual needs, children enjoy these.

All children, including those who need additional support, do not make the progress they are capable of, due to the weakness in planning and behaviour management.

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

On the day of the inspection, most of the adults working with children did not hold a recognised childcare qualification. Leaders and managers have failed to ensure that they meet staff-to-child ratio requirements.

This has an impact on staff's ability to keep children safe and meet their individual needs. Leaders have redeployed staff to other branches, leaving this setting without enough qualified staff to meet children's needs or legal requirements. This hinders the manager's ability to deliver high-quality, inclusive education.

The failure to meet legal requirements has an impact on children's safety and well-being.Overall, children enjoy playing together. For example, children work together to create mixtures using a range of ingredients at the 'potions station'.

They talk about how herbs smell and they use different scoops and bowls to add to the mix. However, due to weaknesses in teaching, not all children benefit from targeted support. Staff do not have the knowledge and skills required to implement an effective and challenging curriculum.

This does not support children, including those who need additional support, to make good progress in their learning.The youngest children receive plenty of affection. Staff working with babies are passionate about their roles.

Babies enjoy songs and rhymes throughout the day and staff chat to them with animated expressions. This helps babies to build an affectionate bond with the staff who care for them. Staff caring for the youngest children have not received any training that specifically addresses the care of babies.

However, they create a calm, stimulating environment which helps babies to settle.In some areas of the setting, the disorderly environment and lack of staff available to support children mean children's behaviour and attitude to learning are poor. For example, when some children are climbing furniture or running around indoors, it affects other children who cannot concentrate.

Some children, particularly those who are new to the setting or those who need additional support, become unhappy when their peers become very noisy. This has an impact on their ability to engage with the curriculum.Leaders have developed a healthy, balanced menu which provides a range of options to accommodate allergies and dietary preferences.

Children enjoy their meals and they eat well. However, staff responsible for preparing and handling food have not received training in food hygiene and managing food allergies. Furthermore, staff cannot always monitor children effectively at mealtimes, as ratio requirements are not met.

While staff are clearing away plates, children eat food directly from the table. This affects children's welfare, social development and their understanding of how to keep themselves safe.The manager does not follow procedures thoroughly when gaining the required written permission from parents to administer medicine.

This is a breach of requirements and significantly compromises children's health and safety.The systems for staff induction and ongoing supervision are not effective. Induction arrangements do not ensure that staff understand their roles and responsibilities.

Supervision arrangements do not ensure staff get time to discuss how to address concerns about specific children. Supervision does not address weaknesses in teaching or provide opportunities for staff to develop through focused training. As a result, staff do not improve their teaching ability.

Staff regularly update the electronic communication tools they use to inform parents about their child's routine during the day. Parents share information and comment on activities in the same way. The manager invites parents to face-to-face meetings and staff complete a health and development review when children are aged between two and three years.

This helps keep parents up to date about their child's learning and development.Leaders do not evaluate or monitor the provision effectively to keep children safe and promote their interests. They do not take prompt action to address identified areas of concern, such as checking that staff ratios and qualification requirements are met.

During the inspection, senior leaders demonstrated they are aware of the issues although they have not addressed the weaknesses to ensure they are meeting requirements.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.Children's safety and welfare are not prioritised.

Overall, staff feel confident to raise any concerns they have about the welfare of a child with the manager or local agencies responsible for child protection. However, staff knowledge of safeguarding is limited. For example, not all staff, including those with a lead responsibility for safeguarding, have an understanding of the 'Prevent' duty or female genital mutilation.

Staff cannot adequately supervise children due to the failure to meet ratio requirements, which compromises children's safety and emotional well-being. The manager does not ensure procedures for the administration of medication and safe food preparation are followed to promote children's health and well-being.

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 the statutory requirements for staff qualification and adult-to-child ratios are consistently met to promote children's safety, learning and well-being 30/11/2023 implement a broad curriculum which considers the individual needs, interests and development of each child, including children who need additional support, and ensure staff can implement it effectively 30/11/2023 ensure that staff with key-person responsibilities fully understand the role and can tailor learning and care to meet children's individual needs 30/11/2023 provide appropriate training and professional development opportunities for all staff to ensure they offer quality learning and development experiences for children that continually improve 30/11/2023 ensure that all staff receive child protection training and have up-to-date knowledge of safeguarding issues, including the 'Prevent' duty, and how to identify and report safeguarding concerns 30/11/2023 ensure induction and supervision arrangements are robust and provide effective support, coaching and training for practitioners that promote the interests of children 30/11/2023 ensure staff responsible for preparing and handling food are competent to do so and have received training in food hygiene and managing food allergies 30/11/2023 obtain written permission from parents before administering medication and keep a written record each time a medicine is administered.

30/11/2023