Dinotots Childcare

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children are happy and relaxed in the nursery.

When they arrive, they separate easily from their parents and carers. Staff collect a wealth of information from parents about their child. This helps them to meet each child's individual routines.

All staff have high expectations for the children. They look at how children use the different areas and equipment, and think about how this can be improved to support children's learning. Children behave very well.

Staff provide them with very good role models and help them to begin to manage their behaviour. For example, they ask children how they are feeling and deal... with them very sensitively when they get upset or frustrated. Children are extremely proud of their achievements.

They enthusiastically show staff what they have done and talk about how they have used the scissors to cut out shapes. Children feel safe as they approach adults to sit on their knee at story time. Staff plan an exciting range of activities that engage children and motivate them to learn.

Children enthusiastically explore the environment and can easily select the toys they want to use from low-level shelves. Children help themselves to chopped fruit and water throughout the day.

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

The manager knows what works well and what needs to improve.

However, some issues with the premises need to be acted on more swiftly. She encourages staff to think about how they can ignite children's interests through simple planning in the setting. Activities that are planned focus on children's interests.

For example, when a child pretends to take a member of staff for a ride on their bus, staff plan for children to make a bus and tickets.Children love circle time and choose which of their favourite songs they would like to sing. They all confidently and enthusiastically join in with well-known action rhymes.

They enjoy simple stories that introduce new words, which helps to extend their vocabulary.Children have very positive and nurturing relationships with staff. Staff know all of the children very well, which means they can support their emotional well-being.

They help younger children to manage their feelings and encourage them to take turns and share.Children have daily opportunities to visit local parks and play outside. Staff help children to understand risks by giving them explanations about how they should use the stairs to go up the slide.

Meals that children benefit from are freshly prepared. Younger children develop their independence as they enjoy feeding themselves lasagne.Links with other settings are being established.

Staff collect information from the other settings that children attend, such as nursery, if there have been any accidents. However, this is currently less focused on finding out what children know and can do at other settings, so staff can plan activities that support children's learning.Staff monitor children's progress effectively.

Where they have any concerns about a child's development, they speak to the parents and any other professionals that are involved in the child's care, so they are able to plan activities to support children's learning.Parents are provided with good-quality information about what their child is learning at the nursery. For example, staff write down 'wow' moments to share with parents at collection time.

Staff encourage children and parents to bring in items from home to add to their displays. For example, children collect leaves and bring in pumpkins. Children explore the awe and wonder of the world as they look at pumpkin seeds and play with soil.

The manager has worked hard to bring the new staff team together. She has an ambitious but realistic vision for the nursery. Regular reviews of staff's practice show where practice has had a positive impact on children's learning.

The manager and staff look at what they need to develop to ensure that children's skills across all areas of learning can improve. Staff feel involved in decisions that affect their practice and they have time out of the sessions to update children's progress records.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff show a good awareness of what they need to do if they have a concern about a child and they know how to report any concerns about any adults working with children. They follow good procedures to help to keep the building secure. Adults collecting children other than parents or carers use a password when they arrive so that children are kept safe.

Staff complete regular checks on the premises and equipment. This helps to make sure that the children and the environment are safe and any issues during the day are dealt with swiftly.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: consider ways to improve the already good relationships with other settings so that information about what children know and can do at other settings can be used to further develop planning refine self-evaluation to swiftly identify emerging weaknesses in practice and take steps to deal with any issues quickly.