Fennies Wimbledon

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Staff greet children warmly and children settle quickly. Children explore the safe and well-resourced environment.

They show enjoyment and become absorbed in the activities indoors and outdoors. Staff plan challenging activities based on children's individual needs and interests. For example, older children explore and mix colours using paint and water.

They delight in transporting sand and explore its texture. Babies cruise around furniture and pull themselves up to access activities that interest them. They enjoy investigating paint, and banging and shaking musical instruments.

Children behave well. Staff ar...e good role models and skilfully help children to manage their feelings and behaviour. They talk to children about the importance of sharing and taking turns.

Children listen attentively to staff and follow instructions. They develop their physical skills through a range of stimulating experiences. Children spend lots of time in the outdoor area where they develop their large-muscle skills as they run and ride trikes with their friends.

Staff plan group activities imaginatively to encourage children to work together and share their findings. For example, children dig and look for insects and bugs in the garden. They use magnifying glasses to examine them closely.

Staff engage children in conversation and talk about the insects they find. Older children immerse themselves in conversations with others about matters that interest them, such as going to the café. They talk with eagerness about what they are doing as they play and their favourite colours as they paint and draw.

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

The manager and leaders effectively review the setting to make improvements. They monitor staff's performance to help identify their strengths and where improvements can be made. Staff attend regular supervision meetings and complete peer-on-peer observations to review their practice further.

All staff receive good coaching, support and training from leaders and outside sources.Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, parents and carers are unable to enter the premises. The manager has adapted routines to meet the emotional needs of individual children.

Key persons now meet children at the door. This helps to develop strong relationships with families. A good 'buddy system' is in place to ensure that there is someone to help and support children if their key person is not available.

Overall, staff attend to children's care needs well. Children develop a good understanding of daily routines, which helps to raise their self-esteem and sense of belonging. However, on occasions, staff do not consider how care practices could be even better adapted.

For instance, when babies and young children become unsettled, staff do not fully consider how best to manage these times.Staff identify and regularly check what children know and can do. They make good use of this information to plan a well-designed and ambitious curriculum, which covers all areas of learning.

Older children take part in Spanish and French lessons and benefit from weekly physical education sessions.The in-house chef prepares highly nutritious snacks and meals. Staff talk to children about healthy eating and encourage children to try new foods.

Children's dietary needs are well met. They develop a good understanding of the importance of healthy eating. For example, children comment that they 'are longer' because they eat fruit and vegetables.

Staff have high expectations for all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff monitor children closely to identify any gaps in their development and work closely with other professionals. All children, including children with English as an additional language and funded children, make good progress.

Overall, staff skilfully interact with children to help develop their communication and language skills. For example, they repeat words back to children and encourage older children to share their thoughts and ideas. Children listen to stories and enjoy looking at books on their own.

Additionally, staff use pictures to support children's understanding of words and routines. However, not all staff use consistent strategies with young children and babies to support their developing communication and language skills.Staff effectively incorporate mathematics into children's play in creative and interesting ways.

For example, children develop an understanding of 'half full' and 'full'. Older children count how many spoons of ingredients they need when making play dough. Staff encourage children to explore quantities in their mud kitchen recipes as they cut vegetables to make soup.

Parents comment positively about their children's experiences in the nursery and the progress their children make, including how well children have settled in when they first started. Parents play a strong role in nursery life. There are parent representatives who help to ensure that parents' views and ideas are consistently heard by the provider.

Staff share regular updates, photos, observations, and assessments of children via an online application.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager and staff have a good understanding of their role and responsibilities to protect children and keep them safe.

All staff complete online safeguarding training. They know the procedures to follow should they have a concern about a child's welfare and know to report any concerns to the designated safeguarding lead practitioner. Robust recruitment procedures are in place to ensure that all staff are suitable to work with children.

Managers and leaders provide new staff with an in-depth induction to help them to understand their roles and responsibilities. Staff provide a safe and secure environment for children.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nensure that staff provide children with consistently good interactions, particularly when working with younger children and babies, to further support their personal, social and emotional development review staff's practice to ensure that they use every learning opportunity to promote children's communication and language development to the highest level.