Fairways Childcare Centre

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children enter the childcare centre confidently.

After a hug from parents and carers, they immediately engage in their chosen play. Children behave well and show respect for each other. They are kind and caring.

Older children often help younger children to reach things or to complete a task. Children chat confidently with each other and with the staff, sharing experiences from home, such as whether they have decorated their Christmas tree or been to see Santa yet. They have fun decorating the childcare centre's Christmas tree and proficiently adorn it with colourful baubles and tinsel.

Children regularly go f...or walks in their local area and participate in exciting activities in the local woods, or at the park. They visit the adjacent church and church yard, often collecting items of natural interest or taking a rubbing of the various textures they find. Visitors regularly come into the setting to enhance the children's learning opportunities.

For example, they have been visited by a local farmer, the fire department, a police officer and his dog, and a dentist. Children make good progress from their starting points. Staff know the individual children very well and use the information gathered about their progress to help them to plan effectively for children's next stage of learning.

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

Parents speak very highly of the staff and management. They comment on how well their children settled at the setting and how supportive they find the staff. Parents state that their children love coming to the setting and are often disappointed if it is a day that they are not attending.

Managers seek the views of parents, children and others to help them to continuously improve and develop the setting. They have clear plans to further enhance the outdoor learning provision.Children are keen and active learners.

They enjoy participating in the wide range of activities provided for them. Children have fun making a selection of Christmas crafts. Staff promote children's learning well during adult-led activities.

For example, while making penguin pictures from hand and foot prints, staff talk to the children about penguins. They discuss where they live, how they walk, what their young are called and what they like to eat. Staff introduce new words to enhance this learning, such as 'toboggan'.

Children listen attentively to stories read by staff in an interesting and imaginative way. They enthusiastically participate in singing sessions. Children answer to their names at registration time, some in keeping with the time of year.

For example, by responding with a 'ho ho ho'.Children form caring relationships with the staff, who respond kindly to them. They are on hand to give a reassuring hug whenever needed, or share a joke.

They giggle together as children show off their special talents, such as wiggling their eyebrows in a funny, coordinated way.Children learn to manage their own personal needs proficiently. Staff remind them of the importance of handwashing before they touch food.

Children enjoy developing their physical skills, for example when they balance carefully along the balancing beams in the garden and climb the climbing frame to slide back down again.Children's achievements are celebrated. Staff enthusiastically praise their work and congratulate them.

Intricate models are carefully moved when tables are required for something new, so that the children's models remain intact and children can return to their play.Children make some informed choices for themselves and guide some of their own play and learning. At times, however, staff do not make the best use of both planned and freely chosen play to further enhance their independence skills.

Staff receive regular support from managers. They meet to discuss their professional development and well-being frequently. Staff undertake a range of training to help them to develop their skills.

However, teaching is not currently at a consistently high level across the team.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff demonstrate a good understanding of safeguarding issues.

They recognise the symptoms that might suggest that a child's welfare is being compromised or that they are not safe, including being drawn into radicalisation. Staff regularly update their safeguarding knowledge, for example through appropriate training and research. Managers test the staff's safeguarding knowledge regularly and put in place training where gaps are identified.

Managers have robust recruitment procedures to help ensure that all adults working with children are suitable. They review their ongoing suitability, for example when they meet to appraise each member of staff's work.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nimprove the quality of teaching to help raise children's learning to a consistently high level nincrease the opportunities provided for children to develop their independence skills.

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