Noah’s Ark Nursery and Pre School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children engage confidently in the learning environment that staff set out for them.

They independently select the activities they would like to take part in and share their experiences with their friends and staff. For instance, children spend time playing with the doll's house. Staff give children time to act out their experiences and share their ideas, which helps children to process their own knowledge of their world around them.

Staff set high expectations for children's behaviour, and they embed strategies in their daily practice to promote good behaviour. For example, staff consistently remind children of the ru...les when they need support during their interactions and activities, such as using kind hands. Additionally, when staff ask children to tidy up the plastic balls on the floor, children readily join in, using containers to collect them.

This demonstrates children's understanding of how they are expected to behave. Staff extend children's activities to support their development. For instance, when children choose to play with a skipping rope, staff use this opportunity to talk to children about how to keep themselves safe.

Staff explain how to use the rope safely, which helps children to develop an understanding of how to manage risks.

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

Since the last inspection, the setting has new leaders in place. They have taken steps to respond to the actions set at the previous inspection, which includes appointing a named deputy and implementing effective risk assessments to ensure the premises and equipment are safe.

The manager and staff have also undertaken safeguarding training to improve their understanding of how to keep children safe. This helps to protect children from harm.The manager has a good understanding of the skills that children need to learn before they start school.

This helps her to design a curriculum that supports them to make progress. For instance, staff promote children's independence skills by encouraging them to tidy up after themselves when they finish eating their lunch. Children respond positively and follow the instructions that staff give to them.

Staff demonstrate good knowledge of children, including their interests and where they are in their development. Staff support children well with their progress, and this helps them to plan for the next stage of their development.Staff plan activities to support children to develop their knowledge of colours and number sequences.

For instance, they organise adult-led activities, such as matching coloured wooden blocks to the correct mat. When children complete their task, staff encourage them to count the blocks as they put them back into the tray. However, staff do not always recognise when adult-led activities continue for too long or when to offer more encouragement for individual children to take part.

At these times, children become distracted and restless, which does not fully promote their concentration and attention skills.Staff supervise children well and use their interests to help them to engage in their learning environment. For instance, staff organise a water activity where children enjoy the feeling of swishing their hands in the water and pouring it down the guttering on the 'water wall'.

This ensures that all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are able to participate in the activities planned by staff.Parents report that they receive effective communication from the manager and staff. This includes information regarding children's progress and ideas for how parents can support children's learning at home.

The manager signposts parents to additional services that may be available to them. This helps to promote children's development further.Staff are well supported by the manager in their professional development and well-being.

They have access to additional training to enhance their practice. For instance, staff have opportunities to complete further safeguarding lead training in order to strengthen their knowledge of how to keep children safe. This helps to promote better outcomes for children.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.There is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: support staff to recognise when and how to adapt adult-led activities to maintain children's interest and attention more consistently.