Bracken Place Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is inadequate

A number of safeguarding and welfare requirements are not met at this setting. This impacts on the quality of care and education children receive.

For instance, leaders do not ensure that staff have a secure safeguarding knowledge or that risk assessment and recruitment and vetting are robust. This does not ensure all individuals that have access to children and families are suitable.Despite this, children arrive to a warm welcome.

Staff provide nurturing and sensitive support to help children settle, ready to start their day. However, there are weaknesses in staff deployment. This means that the interactions chi...ldren receive throughout the day are variable.

In addition, staff do not provide a broad and well-balanced curriculum. This does not enable children to make the progress they are capable of.Nevertheless, children have ample opportunities to be active.

This positively contributes towards developing their physical skills. Pre-school children relish the opportunity to climb and balance on tree stumps and tyres in the large outdoor play space. They giggle with delight as they enjoy participating in games, such as 'What's the time, Mr Wolf'.

Young babies delight in exploring the soft-play room and practise climbing and clambering over step units. Staff support children to behave well and teach them about consistent behavioural expectations. However, due to the weaknesses in the curriculum, children have limited opportunities to build on what they already know, remember, and can do.

This impacts on their attitudes to learning.

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

Since the last inspection, there have been significant changes to the staff team. Leaders have evaluated the quality of the nursery and recognise there are aspects of weaknesses in the curriculum.

However, other issues have not been identified and addressed to meet the requirements. Despite this, leaders demonstrate a commitment to drive the improvement needed.Leaders do not ensure that they, or staff, have a secure understanding of their roles and responsibilities in relation to safeguarding.

This includes allegation management and the external processes to follow in line with local safeguarding partnership guidelines and procedures. Furthermore, they have not ensured staff have a robust knowledge of child protection issues to keep children safe.Leaders do not ensure effective recruitment processes are in place when staff are initially employed.

For instance, staff vetting checks are not consistently conducted or followed up. Leaders do not have robust processes to ensure all staff have effective inductions so they can fully understand their roles and responsibilities. Furthermore, leaders do not robustly check the ongoing suitability of current staff.

As such, this does not ensure the suitability of individuals working with children.Leaders do not ensure staff have the knowledge required in order to identify and take action to minimise or eradicate risk. For example, staff do not make sure that food at mealtimes is prepared appropriately for the age and stage of individual children.

Consequently, this compromises children's safety.Staff deployment is not effective. Leaders do not deploy qualified and more experienced staff effectively across the nursery to successfully meet all children's individual needs.

The quality of the learning experiences children receive is, therefore, variable.There is not a fully embedded, effective key-person approach in place. Leaders have not ensured that all staff who have key-person responsibilities have a sufficient understanding of the early years foundation stage.

Consequently, they are not able to plan specifically for key children's learning needs. Furthermore, babies do not have consistent interactions from their named key person. This does not provide effective support to meet some babies' emotional needs.

Leaders do not ensure required information and records are kept up to date. For instance, some requested documentation was not available. This does not ensure the smooth and efficient running of the nursery.

Staff do not receive all the support they need to plan and implement an age-appropriate, effective curriculum. As such, children receive educational programmes that do not precisely meet their individual needs. Staff plan next steps for very young children that are not suitable for their age and stage of development.

Furthermore, older children's experiences are sometimes directed by staff too much. This does not afford children the opportunity to explore their own creative thoughts and ideas.Despite the weaknesses, staff support children sensitively to learn right from wrong, so they start to understand the impact behaviour has on themselves and others.

Staff work with parents and other professionals to ensure children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive regular support and targeted intervention to help meet their individual needs.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.There is not an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

The provision is inadequate and Ofsted intends to take enforcement action.

We will issue a Welfare Requirements Notice requiring the provider to: Due date ensure all staff have a robust understanding of a range of child protection matters, including concerns about adults who work with children and the process to follow in line with local safeguarding partnership guidelines and procedures 23/09/2024 implement robust vetting procedures and ongoing checks to ensure the suitability of all staff working with children and families 23/09/2024 improve risk assessment arrangements to identify and minimise any hazards to children to effectively maintain their safety and well-being at all times 23/09/2024 improve staff deployment arrangements to ensure there are sufficient staff available in each room to consistently meet all children's care and learning needs 23/09/2024 implement effective key person arrangements to ensure staff have the sufficient knowledge to fulfil their roles and responsibilities to meet the needs of children 23/09/2024 ensure all information and records are in place and available, to ensure the smooth and efficient running of the provision.23/09/2024 To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage and Childcare Register the provider must: Due date plan and implement an age appropriate, broad, and well-balanced curriculum that is tailored to the individual needs of children.

15/10/2024