Chill Out Time Childcare @ Seaton Valley

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children thrive in this friendly pre-school.

They form strong relationships with their key person and other members of staff. Staff are on hand to provide reassurance when they arrive in the morning, when necessary. Children demonstrate they are happy.

For example, two-year-olds laugh as they watch their ball roll down the slope. They bring it back for the activity to be repeated.Staff have high expectations of what children can achieve, overall.

Children choose from a variety of activities that staff plan to extend their learning further. For example, some children learn how to use tweezers to strengthen thei...r small-muscle skills. Other children learn how to sweep up gravel using a dustpan and brush.

Children behave well. Staff help them to understand that other children want to use the same toys as them. Parents value the support that staff give them to manage children's behaviour at home.

Children play in a safe and secure environment. Due to the Covid-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, staff have reduced the number of resources available in a session for ease of cleaning. In other areas, such as the play dough, all children have their own individual resources.

This helps to reduce the spread of infection and provides reassurance to parents that children are safe.

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

Staff have clear plans for developing children's language, overall. They use strategies such as commenting on what children are doing and extending their vocabulary.

However, some staff use too many questions, particularly when talking to younger children. When this happens, younger children do not understand and struggle to respond.Staff, generally, have a good relationship with other settings that children attend.

For example, they share assessments about where children are in their learning with the on-site school. However, they do not share sufficiently detailed information about how they can support and extend individual children's learning to the highest possible level.The manager carries out regular supervisions and observations of staff practice.

However, these are not sufficiently focused on improving the quality of teaching. As a result, there are minor inconsistencies in practice that the manager has not yet identified.Children concentrate well given their age and stage of development.

Two-year-olds are fascinated as they explore how gravel and cars go down chutes. Good support helps them to understand that the speed that things travel at varies. Staff notice what children are interested in and use this to extend their learning further.

For example, when children explore a number display, staff seize the opportunity to develop counting and ordering of numbers.The manager evaluates her provision accurately. She obtains feedback from parents to identify any further areas for development.

She has recently worked with the local authority to review her provision for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. She identifies areas of the curriculum that could be improved further. For example, she is currently developing mathematics with older children to improve this area even further.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, staff have identified that younger children's social skills are less well developed. There is a clear focus on developing this with the two-year-old children and this is having a clear impact. Children play alongside each other confidently and develop respect for others.

They are aware that other children may want to use the same equipment as them.Staff value children's play. They have a strong understanding of what they want children to learn.

This strong curriculum intent is clear as staff play alongside children and support their learning. For example, they demonstrate counting as older children play throw and catch with balls or build with blocks. This helps children to develop their mathematics skills further.

The pre-school work well with parents. They use a variety of methods of communicating with parents. Parents like the electronic system that the setting use to share information about children's learning.

They comment that staff also give them ideas about how they can continue children's learning at home. This strengthens children's learning further.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

There are good procedures in place to keep children safe. For example, all doors into the building and into rooms used by the pre-school are secure. They can only be opened by a member of staff.

This prevents unauthorised visitors accessing the premises. The indoor and outdoor areas are safe and well maintained. The manager and her staff team have a good knowledge of signs and symptoms that may indicate possible abuse to children.

They know the procedures to follow should they have a concern about a child. Staff have a good understanding of wider safeguarding issues, such as the 'Prevent' duty guidance.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nimprove communication with younger children and give them more time to express their own thoughts and ideas strengthen relationships with other settings that children attend and share more detailed information about how to support individual children's learning nimprove staff supervision procedures and focus more precisely on raising the quality of teaching to a higher level.

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