Orchard Lea Nursery Limited

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children thrive with the care and support from dedicated staff.

They are warmly welcomed by their trusted key person, which helps children to feel safe, secure and ready to learn. The strong bonds children have with staff helps to give them confidence to explore. Staff tailor activities towards children's interests, incorporating what they need to learn next.

For example, as younger children play with dolls, they wrap them in bandages and write about their pretend injury in an 'accident book'. This helps children to develop their imagination and practise early writing skills through play. Children behave well and make ...friends.

They use good manners with the guidance of the staff, who are positive role models. Older children show well-developed social skills as they chat happily with their peers over lunch. All children progress well and staff have high expectations of what they can achieve.

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those in receipt of additional funding receive timely support from staff. This helps to promote good outcomes for children. During the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, staff engaged well with families to maintain communication when they were not attending.

Staff telephoned families and suggested things to do at home to support their children. Videos were also placed on their website, such as staff reading stories to children.

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

Staff build good relationships with families from the start and use effective methods in helping all children to settle in at the nursery.

They gather information about children from parents and invite them in for 'settle' sessions. Home visits are currently on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nonetheless, managers recognise the importance of getting to know children as well as possible before they start.

They aim to prioritise home visits as soon as possible.Children enjoy learning together as a group. Staff read to children and invite them to contribute their thoughts to group discussions.

This helps children develop good literacy skills and become confident to share their views with others. However, sometimes, for younger children, groups are too large and some children lose concentration and do not engage in the activity as much as they could to aid their listening skills.Staff plan a broad curriculum designed to help children develop the knowledge and skills for future learning.

They meet with local schools to discuss how they will support children when they start school. Staff encourage children to collaborate with their peers and develop perseverance. As older children build structures, staff use phrases such as, 'keep trying' and 'good team work'.

They encourage children to consider the ideas of others to achieve a shared goal.Overall, staff skilfully interact with children to help develop their communication and language skills. For example, they repeat words back to children to extend their vocabulary and model sign language.

Additionally, staff use pictures to support toddlers and older children's understanding of words and routines. However, not all staff use consistent strategies with babies to support their understanding and speaking skills further.Managers have implemented efficient systems to monitor staff practice.

They meet frequently to reflect on the provision as a team. Managers observe staff working with children and this helps them to identify staff strengths and areas to improve, to ensure children benefit from good-quality teaching.Partnerships with parents are well developed and parents speak very highly of the staff team.

They praise them for how well they prepare their children for school and look after their children's well-being. Parents say staff reassure them as they leave their children in their care and how they appreciate the different ways staff communicate with them.Staff teach children the importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle.

Children are provided with nutritious meals prepared by an outside catering company and the on-site cook. They engage in physical activities, such as using actions to music. Staff support children with their self-care skills, including handwashing.

Although previously the registered person has notified Ofsted about a change of manager within the required timescale, on this occasion they have not. This is a statutory requirement but there was no impact on children or the quality of the provision.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

The managers and staff have a secure understanding of how to keep children safe and how to recognise the signs and symptoms of when a child may be at risk of harm. They are knowledgeable about child protection issues and of the reporting procedures to follow should they have concerns about the welfare of children. Staff receive regular training and in-house coaching to keep their safeguarding knowledge up to date.

Managers follow robust procedures when recruiting new staff to ensure their suitability to work with children. Management and staff know what to do should they have concerns about the conduct of a colleague.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: review the organisation of group times to ensure they meet the needs of all children to support their overall development nensure staff provide babies with consistent strategies and interactions to help them develop their early communication skills even further.