Ivy House Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children have good attitudes towards learning and show pride in their achievements. For example, children have confidence and delight when showing the pictures that they have created.

The staff recognise the children's success and generously praise them. This makes the children feel valued and proud of their accomplishments. The staff read to children in a way that captures their imaginations and excites them.

For example, the staff read a book about a farmyard to a small group of children. They join in with making animal noises and pointing out the different animals in the book. More children join the group to listen ...and take part in this pleasant experience.

This promotes children's love of books and supports their communication and language and early literacy skills. Children show they are happy and enjoy being outdoors. They talk about what they are doing.

The staff play with the children and share their joy in the outdoor activities. Children have an interest in trucks and fill them up with stones in one area and roll them along the ground to empty them in a different area. Staff understand the areas of learning and the developmental skills that they acquire during this play.

They can clearly explain the ways in which they will extend this interest to further enhance their learning.

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

Managers and staff understand what they want children to learn. They have created a stimulating environment for children to grow.

The curriculum intention is well thought out and supports all children. Staff review the children's interests when they plan activities. Children are progressing well and developing new skills in all areas of the curriculum.

Children engage in activities that have been set with an initial purpose. However, staff do not enforce the activity intention if children decide to be creative with their own inventions. For instance, children start off engaged in an 'Elmer' activity for book day, using paper plates, scissors and pens.

However, they quickly change their agenda and make pizzas and snakes. Staff recognise and appreciate the children's creations and share their delight in their work.Staff have effective strategies in place to support children with potential special educational needs and/or disabilities.

They swiftly identify areas of development where children may need extra support and work closely together with parents. This ensures consistency between the home and the nursery to deliver the best outcomes for the child.Children are supported to be independent and develop their self-care skills.

They help prepare and cut fruit at snack time. For example, children are encouraged to peel bananas themselves and use safety knives to chop them up. Some staff promote good hygiene routines for children and support them to wipe their nose and wash their hands.

However, this practice is not followed by all staff. Therefore, children do not consistently learn good hygiene procedures that help limit the spread of germs.Children are encouraged to understand their feelings.

Staff recognise the value of this when supporting the children's personal, social and emotional development. They promote equality and celebrate different cultures and ethnicities. For example, children explore music from their cultural backgrounds, and staff softly encourage children to be kind.

This enriches children's experiences and supports them to have a positive sense of self.Parents express their gratitude to staff's commitment and support for their children. They feel involved with children's learning and are regularly updated on their child's development.

Parents feel confident to share any concerns that they may have and feel like these would be dealt with appropriately.Managers use effective strategies to support children's positive behaviour, which are reinforced by most members of staff. With strategies in place, staff support and guide children to achieve acceptable behaviour.

However, there are inconsistencies with some staff knowledge and not all staff are confident to manage challenging behaviour.Managers and leaders strive for continual improvements to deliver the best care for children and their families. They support staff effectively to develop and enhance their skills, and their well-being is a priority.

Recruitment procedures are robust to ensure that those working directly with children are suitable to do so.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Managers and staff can demonstrate their knowledge of child protection and how they safeguard children and protect their welfare.

Staff confidently explain their understanding of the different signs of abuse. They fully understand the indicators that may suggest a child is at risk of harm. They show awareness of wider safeguarding concerns and where to refer any concerns.

Managers are committed to continuously reinforcing staff knowledge to ensure that their understanding is secure to keep children safe. Managers and staff have robust protocols in place to ensure that the fire evacuation procedure is understood and followed efficiently.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: make sure that all staff teach children how to follow good hygiene routines and protect themselves against infection nimprove staff knowledge so that incidents of challenging behaviour are addressed in a consistent manner by all staff.